The Autumn Swan
by Lord Akiyama
Summary: Suppose Cho said yes to Harry asking her to the Yule Ball. What kind of relationship could they have developed? HPCC AU Reboot to "Harry Potter and the Autumn Swan."
1. Prologue

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> This is a reboot of _Harry Potter and the Autumn Swan_. I had stopped that story after fifty chapters and nearly a year of inactivity because I felt I was getting away from the primary focus of the story, which was the development of a relationship between Harry and Cho, by throwing in a great deal of unnecessary additional storylines that ultimately clashed together. Clashing to the point that I could not figure out how to proceed any further with the story properly. Coming out of a challenging period for me and my family that sapped my creativity for a good long while, it allowed me to really see for myself just how far off the tracks I felt I was going. So I came to the difficult decision to reboot the story almost from scratch. Elements from the original version will more than likely carry over into this version because there were a lot of great things in there that I am still happy to have written and would like to retain. There will be changes, though I am confident they will not deter from the spirit of the original version.

Please enjoy this version of the story and send in reviews. I really want to know what you guys think every step of the way.

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

Cho Chang was talked into trying out for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team at the start of her fourth year at Hogwarts when it was discovered that her godfather was Liam MacPherson, the famed former Seeker for the Tutshill Tornadoes. Roger Davies, the house team captain, was so insistent of her trying out that he was literally crawling on his knees to beg on a daily basis. At first, Cho thought it was really an attempt by Roger to eventually ask her out. After all, it was not the first time he told a girl she had potential talent and to try out for the team, only for her to not make it and instead engage in a short-term relationship with him. Yet this ended up being different as she would later learn that the team was in desperate need of a Seeker. And since her godfather was Liam MacPherson, it would stand to reason that she received some training from him, which was indeed the case. Cho finally gave in and tried out for the team. Within hours, it was apparent that she was quite skillful and talented enough at the position to warrant her earning a spot on the team. Some thing that she never really aspired to do.

Being part of the Quidditch house team was quite the physical chore. Roger wanted to make sure that everyone was at the top of their game at all times. It did not matter that it was practice, he wanted to make sure that all were giving their best to justify their being on the team. Often times he would single some one out and push them beyond their limits in order for them to excel at one exercise drill. Being a rookie, Cho was singled out very early. She was pushed so hard and so far beyond her athletic capabilities that when the day was finally finished she was soaked in sweat and her entire body was sore for a week. No training she had previously received from her godfather ever came close to matching the intensity of a practice run by Roger.

Yet there was also a strengthening of camaraderie taking place. The team, by in large, hung out together as much and as often as possible every day. They gathered together at one end of the Ravenclaw dining table in the Great Hall, conversing either on Quidditch strategies or just to tell one another humorous stories. Within Ravenclaw Tower, all would be found in the common room to pass along some more stories or share knowledge with one another as they studied for upcoming exams and tests. It hardly left Cho with any time to spend with her friends like Marietta Edgecombe or Padma Patil. As a matter of fact, spending time with the team was quite an experience compared to spending time with her friends. To be perfectly blunt, her friends were girls and everyone else on the team were boys. Aside from Quidditch, there was not much she had in common with the boys. Regardless, they were getting along swimmingly and by the end of their second practice it was as if they could all relate to one another on the same level. Still, this did not stop them from pulling some unfortunate ribbing on her, most of which in the beginning were attempts to cause Cho to be caught without some clothes on. At least Roger had the decency to put a stop to the tomfoolery quickly before it really got any worse.

By the time Ravenclaw finally played their first game of the year against Slytherin, they were the equivalent of a well-oiled machine. There was not a weak link within the team as their bond was stronger than ever. Through all of the practice Roger put them through, they were more than ready to achieve nothing less than victory. So they were shocked and disappointed when they were narrowly defeated by Slytherin. No one on the team could figure out how they could have done any better than they did. None of them would even blame Cho, despite the fact that it was through Draco Malfoy's retrieval of the Snitch that allowed Slytherin to win at all. The way they saw it, the spoiled brat managed to get lucky by being at the right place at the right time when the Snitch made a sudden split move just as Cho had it within her grasp.

So when it came time for their next practice meet, they spent all of their time going over what they did both right and possibly wrong in the game and offering ideas and suggestions about how they could improve the next time around. Once an idea was announced, the team would get up and immediately run through an exercise designed to see if for sure the idea was helpful. Every practice afterward until the next game was back to the same routine of pushing one another past their limits to prepare them physically and mentally. And since they were implementing the new ideas that had been suggested in the earlier meet, it only made the drills more grueling and intense than before. Cho could hardly make it back to Ravenclaw Tower on her own two feet she was so exhausted and worn out at the end of each practice. But she was of the same mindset as the others that all of this hard work would reward them in the end.

Their second game of the year would be against Gryffindor. A game that made Roger very anxious. Not nervous, because that would be allowing the opposition to see that as a sign of weakness. No, Roger was instead anxious. Anxious because his rookie Seeker would be contending against The Boy Who Lived. Every student in the school knew that Harry Potter was a gifted Quidditch player. It was as though he had been born to master the sport inside and out, even though all knew that was very far from the case. Nevertheless, having Cho contend against Harry for the Snitch was going to be a difficult obstacle to overcome if Ravenclaw hoped to win against Gryffindor. What's more, Harry was going to be flying the new Firebolt broom while Cho would only have a Comet Two Sixty. This forced Roger, and the team in general, to come up with a different strategy than the one used against Slytherin. For Cho to even attempt to outfly Harry in an effort to catch the Snitch would be foolhardy at best.

Stepping out onto the field, Cho wanted to make sure that she would not feel intimidated or in awe of Harry Potter. She had heard so many stories about him, both good and bad. Most of the bad stories were obviously coming from the Slytherins, but there were a few that came from within Ravenclaw. Even Marietta would share some of the negative gossip she overheard about The Boy Who Lived. The positive things being said about him were not just coming from Gryffindor. Other Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students, even some of the Hogwarts professors, had been praising him in some fashion or another, and not just because he was talented at Quidditch. Many had spoken of supposed acts of heroism he performed, be it within the school grounds or otherwise. There was, of course, the common knowledge that it was more than twelve years ago that he apparently brought an end to the reign of He Who Must Not Be Named, and yet from what Cho heard, he never really seemed to trade off of that fact. Instead, he merely wanted to get along with everyone else as best as he could. Hardly the personality of an attention-seeking hound that the negative stories made him out to be. Nevertheless, she was not going to allow herself to be taken in by any of the stories, good or bad. When it was time for her to meet Harry Potter, she was simply going to smile. Which was exactly what she did.

Cho found his reaction to her smiling to him curious. It was almost as if he had suddenly caught his breath for almost no apparent reason. She thought little more of this and returned immediately to concentrating on the game at hand. At the command of Madam Hooch, she mounted her broom and it was not long before she kicked off into the air. Shortly after the match officially started, Cho could sense that Harry immediately caught on to the strategy she and her team agreed upon. She may not be able to outfly Harry in speed, but she knew she had quite a few tricks up her sleeve with regards to setting up misdirections and then suddenly cutting across without him expecting it one bit. A little something her godfather helped her in mastering. She managed to cut him off a couple of times, looking to frustrate him to the point of making mistakes as the match progressed. At least, that was the plan. But then, more often than not, plans did go awry.

At one point, both Seekers caught sight of the Snitch glittering on the Ravenclaw end of the field. Harry had made an attempt to lose her as a tail only for both to accelerate toward the winged ball. As had been noted, the Firebolt Harry had would outmatch the Comet Two Sixty Cho flew in speed. Cho knew she needed to cut him off in some fashion. But before she could even allow herself a second to think, she spotted three black hooded figures appear suddenly on the field. She did not realize that she let out a mild scream of surprise until after the fact. In a flash, Harry, without any sort of hesitation, pulled out his wand, pointed it toward the figures, and yelled out a spell. A burst of white light shot out of the tip of his wand and connected against the figures, causing them to drop to the ground upon impact. As though this sort of distraction was not worth giving his attention to, he managed to quickly put his wand back into his robe, reached out, and grabbed the Snitch. It was a spectacular display of skill and ability that had to be far beyond his years, yet he pulled it off like it was second nature.

Cho was absolutely and utterly stunned. She really did not know how to react. What she saw was amazing. Unfortunately, it was at the expense of her team losing. Losing rather quickly and decisively. As Gryffindor celebrated their victory, the Ravenclaw Quidditch team managed to gather together and look on in disbelief. They could not believe that the match was over as soon as it did. It could not have been because they played bad. They barely had the opportunity to truly let themselves loose as they were just warming up. Cho did her part by cutting off Harry here and there. Just how in the world could they have lost this badly?

Within all of the commotion that was being made by the Gryffindor students, it was soon discovered that the three hooded figures were four Slytherin students. And not just any Slytherin students either. They were Draco Malfoy, Gregory Goyle, Vincent Crabbe, and the Slytherin Quidditch team captain Marcus Flint. It seemed that all four were attempting to disrupt Harry by passing themselves off as Dementors. Unfortunately for them, it appeared that Harry was prepared given the way he reacted. Seeing Slytherin students trying to interfere with the game was all the proof the Ravenclaw Quidditch team needed to pinpoint where the fault for their loss would lay. As much as they would like to have won the match, there was no way they could possibly live with themselves at the thought of winning because a group of poor sports tried to take out an opposing player by dubious means. It just would not be right morally and ethically. This interruption ruined the match for them, regardless of the fact that they lost.

The Ravenclaw Quidditch team was brooding as they made their way off of the field. Yet Cho, in an attempt to get her mind off of what happened and focus on any thing else as quickly as possible, brought her thoughts back to just before the match started. When she met Harry briefly for the first time, face to face, and she smiled at him. He did not smile back in response, but then he did not appear to display any sort of determination either. It was more like the sight of her caught him by surprise, that he was not expecting to see her of all people. The way his green eyes had shot wide open, if only for a quick moment, and his mouth opening just barely. Almost as though he was suddenly looking upon a vision. A curious way he reacted since he was only looking at her, Cho thought. It was not as though she were any sort of beauty to behold.

Or was she?

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> In rebooting the story, I decided to throw in this opening prologue to set the pace. With it came a couple of noticeable changes between this version and the previous in that I ended up following canon on some statistics on Cho. In the previous version, she started playing Quidditch in her second year, her parents were Muggle-born, and Liam MacPherson was her uncle. In this version, she started playing Quidditch in her fourth year, her parents were Wizard-born, and Liam MacPherson was her godfather. Expect other noticeable changes to occur, though, as I stated above, there will be elements that will remain the same. I will let you know when they occur.

I know this was only the prologue, but I would very much appreciate some feedback. So please send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	2. Ch 1: The Answer

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

**The Answer**

Harry Potter braved the elements that were the cold winter temperatures of December as he made his way up the spiral staircase that would lead him into the Owlery. He had become rather anxious and nervously impatient over the course of the last few days since the first task of the Triwizard Tournament had been completed. He still did not have any idea how to obtain a clue about the forthcoming second task from the golden egg he retrieved. Hermione was back on her house-elf liberation campaign, whatever it was called again, and seemed to have found a voice for it in Dobby, who had started working at the school on a salary. Rita Skeeter was looking to obtain any more nasty gossip on him to publish in the Daily Prophet. And what will surely be a difficult potions exam to be given by Professor Snape just prior to the students being let out for Christmas break was looming on the horizon. Yet all of that was the least of his concerns. What was really making his head swirl more than any other was the Yule Ball.

As informed by Professor McGonagall, the Triwizard Tournament Champions, which Harry was one of, were expected to open the Yule Ball by dancing with their partners. From the moment he received this dreadful news, he had been a complete wreck emotionally. For one thing, he did not know how to dance. Not even lessons Professor McGonagall offered made him any more comfortable with having to do some thing that was just so foreign to him. Not to mention having to remember so many directions. Where he was supposed to step, when he was supposed to step, maintaining eye contact with his partner literally at all times, twirling them just right, all while moving gracefully and without hesitation. It was so challenging and so complex that it made having a second go with the Hungarian Horntail seem like a more appealing alternative. Yet as a Triwizard Champion, he had to do the bloody thing to start the event. With a partner, no less. As if dancing was not already bad enough, Harry had to find a girl to be his partner.

With the way the vast majority of the girls present at Hogwarts were acting, it was as though they had waited their whole lives for the Yule Ball. As though there was justification for them to be dressing up fancifully in grand fashion just so they could dance. There was nothing more important in the whole wide world, not even the threat of Voldemort returning to resume his reign of terror could deter these girls from thinking about any thing but the Yule Ball. He could even sense that Hermione, of all people, who was always more concerned about studying and reading than doing any thing else, had a difficult time masking her excitement over the event. She did a splendid job hiding it, that much Harry was willing to give her credit, but he recognized the same look in her eyes that all the other girls had. That look of anticipation that would otherwise dictate her every action as the ball drew nearer and nearer.

The need for him to have a partner to dance with was what really sent Harry through a whirlwind of emotions. On one hand, there were many a number of girls who would simply die to be asked out by him. He was, after all, Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived. Being a Triwizard Champion was just a bonus title to an otherwise impressive resume that included Seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, who won the House Cup last year, had put a stop to the Basilisk that was housed within the Chamber of Secrets the year before that, and just recently was victorious in overcoming a Hungarian Horntail. Being the dance partner of Harry Potter at the Yule Ball would surely provide any girl with a share of his celebrity, no matter how small it may end up being. Even just to say that they danced with Harry Potter to open the Yule Ball was more than enough for any girl to throw themselves at his feet, hoping that by doing so he would pick them over the other girls competing for that very spot.

But on the other hand, Harry did not want just any girl to be his partner. He wanted to be with some one whose presence would provide him with some form of comfort through an otherwise uncomfortable situation. A girl he could be relaxed around with so as not to feel any more nervous than he certainly would be in such a setting like the Yule Ball. It would stand to reason that this could be easily accomplished just by asking out his friend Hermione or Ron's sister Ginny or any of the girls on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Only he was hesitating. And in doing so, they were accepting invitations from other boys to be their partners. His hesitation was the result of his wanting to ask one girl in particular. To ask out any other girl, or to accept the invitation of one, would not be entertained until he could finally muster the courage to ask this one girl to be his partner.

A Ravenclaw girl named Cho Chang.

Ever since he first laid eyes upon her nearly a year ago, he had been unfathomably smitten with her. He could not understand one bit why or how. It just happened. Right then and there, seeing her standing before him just as they were about to compete against one another in a Quidditch match, his emotions suddenly made a sharp turn in a direction he never knew existed. From what Harry managed to gather about her, once he was finally brave enough to ask questions, Cho was a fairly popular girl. Not at the level he was or what generally a popular student at Hogwarts was like, but she had her admirers. She had been the only female on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team the previous term and held her own against the competition, which comprised of himself from Gryffindor, Draco Malfoy from Slytherin, and Cedric Diggory from Hufflepuff, the latter also being a Triwizard Champion himself. Being in Ravenclaw obviously meant that she was an intelligent person, as much as, if not more so than Hermione. And she was a very pretty girl. Harry had overheard here and there how some other girls were supposedly considered the prettiest in the school. Then there were the students from Beauxbatons, which included another Triwizard Champion in Fleur Delacour, considered by the vast majority of boys, including Ron, to be the most beautiful of all. But to Harry, Cho appeared to be more pretty and more beautiful than any other girl he had ever seen.

And there in lay the problem. Because she was the prettiest girl to him, it made him that much more nervous to even approach her, let alone ask her to be his partner at the Yule Ball. So many emotions collided head on, along with a great many number of thoughts that played heavily into his being so hesitant. He was clearly attracted to her, but did she feel the same? If she did, was it only because of his celebrity and not from a mutual feeling of interest? Or perhaps she did not think highly of him because of his celebrity. It could be that she just may not be that interested in him without having any reason at all. Maybe she was already seeing some one else. These thoughts, among others, would overload his mind at the mere mention of talking to Cho that there were times he needed to get out of whatever room he was in for some fresh air. He had never experienced any thing like what he was feeling for Cho. It was almost a little scary in a way.

The spiral staircase that ascended all the way up into the Owlery was covered in snow, underneath of which there would surely be ice. Nevertheless, Harry heeded no caution of potentially slipping upon the ice and painfully rolling down the concrete steps. It was bloody cold outside and he wanted to get into some place warm as quickly as possible. Jogging up the stairs, he managed to set aside all thoughts about the Yule Ball, and even Cho, to concentrate on the matter at hand. He was going up to the Owlery to see if his godfather Sirius Black had sent him a note. And if one had not yet arrived, he would wait for it to come.

Stamping his feet on a particularly snow covered step just to keep his blood flowing through the cold temperatures, Harry turned the corner and was about to enter the Owlery. He just managed to catch sight of some one exiting. This split second of recognition allowed for both of them to stop and pull back just quickly enough so that they would not end up crashing into one another. The other person gasping in surprise caused him to look to see who he almost collided with. And in an instant, emotions flooded his entire being. He suddenly was no longer feeling cold. In fact, he was starting to burn up. His green eyes had shot wide open briefly and he was quite certain that there was probably a trace of pink appearing on his cheeks. For standing in front of him was the one person he had not expected to be running into in the Owlery.

"Cho!" he managed to exhale despite being short of breath.

"Harry!" she said in return.

She made a smile on her face, one that caused his heart to accelerate its beats. It did not help that she let out a light, soft laugh as a way of reacting to their near collision. Sensing that he wanted to go into the Owlery and she was going out, both moved to get out of the way. Only they found themselves moving in the same direction as the other. When he stepped to his left, she stepped to her right and blocked his path. When she stepped to her left, he stepped to his right and blocked her path. Still smiling, Cho gently grabbed Harry below his shoulders and moved him to his left so she could move past him. Feeling her grabbing him was a sensation that he could not understand and it only made his heart beat even faster.

"Watch yourself on the stairs," she said, turning to face him now that she was outside of the Owlery and he was inside. "It's a bit icy at the top." Cho spoke with a Scottish accent. Not a heavy one, but one that made it clear of where she was born. It only made her more unique to him as her name and her appearance was of Asian descent. Harry hardly knew any thing of Asia, but he presumed the people who were from there were surely different from the British, or rather the Scottish, with regards to the language they spoke and what accents they had.

"Okay," he managed to utter in response to the caution she had given him. Trying desperately to form a smile of his own and not come off looking like an absolute idiot. "Thanks."

They nodded to one another, both still smiling, before turning away toward their separate destinations. Harry only took a step or two inside the Owlery before he stopped himself dead in his tracks. Within the span of one second, he mentally argued with himself about the fact that he had an opportunity to ask Cho to the Yule Ball. Now was the time to act, his own nervousness of the fact he thought of her as the prettiest girl around be damned. There was probably never going to be a more ideal chance. They were virtually all alone, so no one else would be able to see him make a fool of himself. Taking a deep breath and swallowing hard, Harry turned back and rushed out after her.

"Cho?" he called as soon as he passed through the doorway.

"Yes?" she replied. She had barely gone down a few steps when he called out to her and she immediately spun in place to face him. Still wearing that smile on her face.

"Um," he immediately uttered. Oh boy, he thought. He was already tripping over himself before he could even start a sentence. "Well… I just wondered if you…" He was still stuttering, but at least he was getting the words out. Still, he had a feeling that his nervousness was being displayed in full before her. Not just with how he was struggling to speak, but also with his body movement. Twitching and constantly shifting his body weight from left to right. He was quite surprised he was not pushing his glasses back up his nose or scratching the back of his head from within his shaggy brown hair.

"I-just-wondered-if-maybe-you-wanted-to-go-to-the-ball-with-me."

There was so much that went so wrong and he was mentally beating himself half to death over it. What in the world was he thinking speaking at such a fast pace? Even he could not register what exactly came out of his mouth. It did not help that seemingly all of the owls in the Owlery decided to create some noise right then and there. It was as though there needed to be some thing else in addition to his getting tongue tied to prevent Cho from understanding, or even hearing, what he had said. Why else would there be a brief moment of silence and her smile disappearing?

"Sorry," she said, squinting her eyes as though doing so may help her recall even a word that came out of his mouth. "I didn't catch that."

"Um," he uttered again. Then he took a deep breath and slowly repeated what he had said before. Speaking almost as if he needed to emphasize every other word. "I was just… wondering if… maybe you… wanted to go… to the ball… with me." At least it was not as humiliatingly disastrous as the last time. Not to mention Cho would surely be able to understand exactly what he was saying. He had finally found the strength to ask her to be his partner at the Yule Ball, even if he did not do so in the form of an actual question.

"Oh," she said. Giving nothing away as to what her exact reaction was. "Um… Harry…"

At that very moment, time seemed to have stopped for Harry Potter. He was not feeling any less nervous. In fact, it was only getting worse. He was getting so hot that he was sure sweat was starting to form at the top of his head. His heart was now beating at such a rate that it was like it was trying to race against a cheetah. Each breath he made was getting heavier and heavier than the last. And if there had not been any pink on his cheeks before, they were bound to be there now. It was almost like it did not matter what her response was going to be. At any minute he was more than likely going to have a heart-attack.

"Harry, I…" she continued to say before stopping. It seemed that she herself was stammering, but it still gave no clear indication of what her response was going to be. "I don't know what to say." And then, the entire world for Harry Potter seemed to have turned upside down, or at least becoming brighter than ever. Cho smiled and let out another light, soft laugh.

"Yes?"

So she did not explode with excitement and joy like some of the other girls would have. But the fact that she answered with that one word, even if it sounded more like a question than a statement, made his heart sing.

"Y-You would?" he dared to ask, wanting to make absolutely certain that she was saying what he thought she said.

"Yes," she replied with a laugh, nodding her head as she took a couple steps towards him. "I would like to go to the ball with you."

Harry wanted to say some thing, but nothing was coming out of his mouth. He was literally speechless. Cho Chang had just agreed to go with him to the Yule Ball. And he now he was having great difficulty just trying to get one word, any word, out of his mouth. This was absolutely revolting. Here he was, speaking to the girl he thought was the prettiest around, she had agreed to go to the ball with him, and could not speak. When he finally did, he sounded very hoarse, as though his voice had given out on him for no good reason.

"Thank you," he managed to say.

Her smile seemed to have gotten bigger as she laughed just a little more. Almost as if she rather enjoyed being in his company. Which helped him just ease a little. There was something about the way she smiled and laughed softly that made him relax. It was as though there was understanding in them and that she was letting him know that she did not mind him being as nervous as he was. Like a gesture of reassurance.

"So, that's it then?" she asked.

"Um," he uttered his favorite opening in response. "Yeah. Yeah, that's… That's it then… I guess… So, um… I'll be… seeing you?"

"All right," she said breathlessly. She then reached her arm out just enough for her to run her hand slightly, yet gently down his upper arm. When she had grabbed him earlier, he could not figure out the feeling he was experiencing at her touch. But this time, he was able to explain what it was. Euphoria. "See you then." Cho maintained her smile as she turned and slowly began to descend down the spiral staircase.

"Bye," he managed to say, hoping that she heard him. Even though she was no longer in sight, he brought his hand up for a wave and formed a light smile on his face.

Cho Chang said yes. That she would go to the Yule Ball with him. He could not believe what had just happened. It was a moment of his life that he would cherish forever. Of all the things he had accomplished thus far, from vanquishing a Basilisk to winning the Quidditch house cup to overcoming Dementors to freeing his godfather from captivity to taking on a Hungarian Horntail. They were nothing compared to the feeling of success he felt for not only finally asking Cho to the ball, but for her to say yes. He was in such a daze that he was barely conscious to the fact that he slowly stepped backwards into the Owlery and then suddenly collapsed onto the hay-covered floor. For quite a long while, Harry laid in place, looking up at the ceiling, watching the occasional owl fly by every now and then. His smile getting just a little bigger as he took a deep breath and then let out a sigh of great happiness.

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><p>Cho had just entered Ravenclaw Tower and was making her way to the common room when she was suddenly ambushed from behind. As the attackers started to let up, she managed to catch a glimpse of who was on top of her. They were none other than Marietta Edgecombe, Lisa Turpin, Mandy Brocklehurst, and Padma Patil, her little group of friends. All four appeared to be extremely excited, doing their best to contain the squealing that they clearly wanted to let out. And it seemed that they could not wait to include her in all of the fun. Making their way into the common room, Cho, Marietta, and Padma crashed down onto the couch while Lisa and Mandy leaned in from behind.<p>

"You are not going to believe this," Padma stated, being the first to finally say something clearly.

"Guess who just asked Marietta to the ball?" Lisa asked, wanting so badly to have the answer to her own question revealed.

"Go on, guess!" Mandy whispered, trying to rush Cho into saying some thing even though barely a second had passed since Lisa spoke.

Cho shook her head and shrugged. "Roger Davies?" she guessed, even though she knew full well that Roger could not possibly be the correct answer. She just wanted them to get it over with and reveal who it was that asked Marietta to the Yule Ball that had them wanting to burst with joy.

"Cedric Diggory," Marietta calmly revealed. Seconds later, all of the other girls started screaming and squealing with such glee that it was deafening.

"Marietta, that's wonderful," Cho managed to say with a smile in response after the noise level had subsided. While they played against one another as opposing Seekers in Quidditch games, Cho had a small, yet respectable friendship with Cedric. The two of them had conversed a couple of times in the past, once after their first game against each other and then over the summer during the Quidditch World Cup. He seemed like a nice guy, so she imagined he would get along with Marietta. "I'm sure you guys are going to have a great time at the ball."

"Don't you know it," Marietta said, her excitement starting to build up to be of the same level as the other girls. "Me with a Triwizard Champion. Oh, I can't wait to see all the jealous faces when they see me dancing with him!"

At first glance, others would question Marietta having been sorted into Ravenclaw. She came off like the average girl who looked to improve their social standing by any means necessary. The truth was that she was academically one of the smartest girls in all of Hogwarts, if not the smartest. She could give any student a run for their money with how quickly and how accurately she could come up with an answer to any question presented to her on a test. It was just that she also wanted to be just as popular for her beauty.

"I bet the dress you'll wear will make you even more fab," Lisa stated.

"You'll definitely be the talk of the school by the time its over," Mandy commented.

Lisa and Mandy seemed like they were girls who wanted to be around popular people and say any thing positive about them. It was just that both Cho and Marietta tutored them their first year, like all second year students in Ravenclaw did, and helped shaped them into being the intelligent girls that they were. So as a way of saying thanks for helping them out, they gave them their full support and would be loyal through any thing that they went through.

"Kind of makes you wish you could go to the ball just to see the reaction they give her for being with Cedric," Padma said.

The Ravenclaw Patil ended up being part of the circle of friends almost by accident. She just happened to have a way with being able to explain certain things like Quidditch or Exploding Snap to the other girls, aside from Cho, that they could better understand and appreciate the concept. She was looked upon as being the equivalent of the street-wise member of the group, though she could clearly just be as girly as the others.

"Actually, I will be going to the ball," Cho announced, some what rather sheepishly since she really did not want to take away all of the excitement for Marietta. "I just got asked out and I said yes."

"Really?" all of the other girls gasped in unison.

While Cho was a fairly popular girl in Hogwarts, it was not necessarily by choice. She just happened to be some one with a naturally out-going personality that drew people to her. The way she looked and the way she smiled made every one who saw her feel good inside. It took a lot for her to ever think less of any one person and usually found at least one thing positive to say about them. Her being the goddaughter of a famous former professional Quidditch Seeker, as well as her having been able to hold her own in the previous term's Quidditch season, increased her popularity as people saw that she was very athletic. Modest to a fault, she also did not think of herself as being as beautiful as others would make her out to be. While she would try to look her best, she felt that she did not need to put in a whole lot of effort into being visually striking, unlike Marietta.

"You are going to tell us who asked you out, right?" Padma asked when there was a moment a silence following the revelation that had been announced. Though to be frank, the moment was awfully brief.

"So who is the lucky fellow that got Cho Chang to say yes?" Marietta questioned further, leaning as close to her friend as possible.

Cho smiled and shrugged. "Harry Potter," she answered rather simply.

"Harry Potter?" the other girls gasped, again in unison.

"The Boy Who Lived?" Lisa asked in disbelief.

"The other Hogwarts Triwizard Champion?" Mandy questioned in shock.

"The Seeker for Gryffindor?" Padma added with a curious brow raised.

"Yes, that Harry Potter," Cho answered to all three questions with a light laugh.

"Oh my gosh," Marietta managed to say, stunned at what she had just heard. "Cho, I… I really don't know what to say." There have been a few times when Cho felt Marietta might be jealous of some of the popularity she received, wanting to be the one to have that kind of attention. But eventually Marietta would come around and be happy for her friend since Cho would never display any sort of jealousy toward her if the roles had been reversed, and thus no need to feel any sort of envy.

"You don't really have to say any thing, Marietta," Cho said. "Although I'm sure how Cedric asked you to the ball would probably be the more interesting story for you to tell."

"What makes you say that?" Lisa asked curiously.

"Harry was just really nervous in asking me out and nothing more," Cho replied with a shrug. "Really couldn't come up with any thing else to say once I agreed, so that was it."

"I think you're right, Cho," Padma said in a teasing voice. "Marietta definitely has the better asking out story to tell. Your's was so boring that I think I'm going to fall asleep." Cho playfully threw a pillow at the Ravenclaw Patil, resulting in all five girls having a giggling fit. After a moment to calm down, Marietta started to tell Cho how it was that Cedric asked her to the ball with the others listening in to remember every detail of what they already knew themselves.

* * *

><p>Harry sat cross-legged in front of the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room. The golden egg he still had not figured out how to open properly was nestled in his lap while he stared into the fire, looking as though some thing was going to appear at any moment. He was lost within his own thoughts, not really paying any sort of attention to whatever went on around him. The coming and going of other Gryffindor students, who themselves seemed to have taken little notice of him sitting as close to the fireplace as he was. Hermione did take notice of him when she entered, but figured he was mentally working on the egg and thus left him alone by placing herself on the couch to read. If only she knew what was really going on inside of his head.<p>

A commotion started to build up, making its way into the room. Harry remained still, but when he thought he heard Ron's name being mentioned he jumped to his feet to see what was going on. There he saw Ron, being accompanied by his younger sister Ginny and a few others, slowly enter the room. He was pale white, like he had just suddenly encountered an army of giant spiders gathering in the Forbidden Forest. Hermione caught sight of Ron herself and gasped, closing the book she had been reading and jumping to her feet as well.

"It's all right, Ron," Ginny said to her brother softly as she led him to the couch. "It's okay, Ron. It's all right. It doesn't matter."

"What happened to you?" Harry asked, walking up to his friend while Hermione crouched down beside him.

"He just asked Fleur Delacour out," Ginny answered for her brother.

Many had been getting on Ron's case, his brothers in particular, about his needing to ask a girl out to the ball before it was too late. Ron was quite apprehensive of the idea, believing himself to be not good enough to go out with any of the ones he fancied. When students he thought were in the same boat as him were finding girls to ask out, he started to get more uncomfortable than ever. He thought he could easily play it safe by asking out Hermione until he was shocked to find that she had already accepted an invitation from some one whose identity she would not reveal. The pressure was really starting to get on his nerves and he boldly stated that he would ask out the Triwizard Champion from Beauxbatons. If what Ginny said was true, he apparently went through with his word.

"What?" Harry asked is disbelief. "What did she say?"

"No, of course," Hermione said, basing her answer on the way Ron looked. But then he managed to muster the strength to just slightly shake his head and Hermione covered her mouth with both hands. "She said yes?"

"Don't be silly," Ron muttered. Then he started speaking more clearly. At least, as clearly as he could be under the state he was in. "There she was, walking by… You know how I like it when they walk… I couldn't help it… It just sort of slipped out…"

"Actually, he sort of screamed at her," Ginny explained in clarification. "It was a bit frightening."

"I don't know what made me do it!" Ron nearly cried. "What game was I playing at? There were people… all around… I've gone mad… everyone watching!"

"And what did you do then?" Harry asked.

"She looked at me like I was a sea slug or something," Ron answered, ignoring the question at first. "Didn't even answer. And then… I dunno… I just sort of came to my senses and ran for it." Ron then looked up to Harry, panic and fear painted across his face. "I'm not cut out for this, Harry. I don't know what got into me."

"You just wanted to get it over with," Harry said, hoping to ease his friend as much as he could. "That's all. Nothing wrong with that. Kind of brave, actually."

"Really?" Ron asked, not sure if he wanted to believe his friend. "You really think so?"

"Sure," Harry replied with a slight chuckle. "I mean, you said you'd ask out Fleur. No one believed you. But you did ask her out. So you ran away before you got a real answer. Yet you did what you said you were going to do."

"Oh yeah," Ron said, slowly starting to relax. Making Harry sigh with relief that he managed to pull that much off. "I guess you're right."

"Still leaves you without a girl to take to the ball," Ginny teased, earning her a glare from her brother that she ignored. "Both of you guys are without some one to take, actually. Perhaps you should take each other." She managed to move in time to avoid an elbow jab from Ron, causing her to laugh with delight.

"Harry, you really should hurry and ask a girl out," Hermione said. "Remember, the Triwizard Champions and their partners open the ball with a dance."

"But I'm already going with some one," Harry said without hesitation. He immediately stopped himself upon realizing what he just said. Unfortunately for him, the others heard him very clearly.

"You asked out a girl?" Ginny asked curiously.

"When were you going to tell us?" Hermione questioned with great interest. "When did you ask her?"

"It just happened," Harry answered, as though he needed to defend himself for some reason. "When I went to the Owlery an hour ago."

"Who's the lucky girl?" Ron asked.

Harry hesitated a little bit, tapping his fingers along the golden egg in his hands. "Cho Chang," he finally answered. The others were taken by surprise.

"The Seeker for Ravenclaw?" Ginny asked in stunned disbelief. "Why her?"

"He's been crushing on her since the Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw game," Ron answered for his friend. "Smitten as soon as he laid eyes on her, isn't that right, mate?" Harry did not respond except for unconsciously forming shades of pink upon his cheeks. This made Ron chuckle with amusement.

"Well, I can imagine you taking so long to ask out a girl, then," Hermione said with a slight sigh. "I mean, there was a girl you've been interested in for roughly a year now and I guess you were just trying to muster up the courage to ask her out. Just like Ron tried to do."

"Only Harry was more successful," Ginny pointed out. She said it as a way of messing with her brother, but there was a slight hint of disappointment in her voice. Some thing that the others did not necessarily pick up on.

"Thank you for the reminder, Ginny," Ron grumbled. He turned his attention back to his friend. "So why aren't you bouncing off the walls? I mean, I would if I knew I was going to be going out with the girl I was crushing on."

"You clearly don't get it, Ron," Hermione said, as if needing to explain for Harry. "It's because that he had been interested in her that he's still as nervous as he probably was before he asked her out. Finally being able to ask her was only the first step. Now he has to actually take her to the ball. And that's where the challenge really begins."

"What do you mean by that?" Ron asked curiously.

Hermione was about to explain further, but Harry said some thing that helped illustrate the point rather easily. "I don't know how to bloody dance," he proclaimed in an exhale.

"Oh," Ron whistled. "Yeah, I can see how that can be a problem, mate. You've been smitten with her and you finally ask her out, but now you have to dance with her. In front of a lot of people, even."

"Gee, you don't say," Harry said with depressed sarcasm. He leaned himself up against the nearest wall then knocked the back of his head upon it. "Why does every thing have to be so difficult?"

"It's part of growing up, Harry," Hermione answered with a sigh. "It never gets any easier."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> First of all, thank you all for the support you have been giving me thus far. I appreciate you guys hanging in there while I not only deal with my own personal business, but also with the decision to restart from the beginning. A lot of very interesting feedback, I should say. Which is excellent because it really helps me in understanding how to proceed with this version of the story. One thing I can reveal is that in this version the entire story will be told from Harry and Cho's perspectives. No one else's. This way, I can keep myself focused on the main point and not deviate into so many other directions like I had done previously.

_ZarosKnight - You said "three hooded figures were four Slytherin students." Which is… not possible._

That's how Rowling wrote it in the book, if I recall correctly. I would imagine two of them, Goyle and Crabbe probably, were stacked upon one another to make one figure. I actually like to think of it that way, so that explains the four Slytherin students becoming three hooded figures.

On a related note, I have started listening to the audiobooks as read by the lovely Stephen Fry while I do my walks. I have been a fan of his even before the books were first published in watching his few appearances on the original British version of _Whose Line Is It Anyway?_ back when they aired on Comedy Central. I actually did not know he did the British audiobooks until maybe a couple years ago, during which I was looking into all things that contained his double act with Hugh Laurie of _House, M.D._ fame. He does a wonderful job and I have tried to imagine how he would read the words I put down as I'm writing. I highly recommend getting your hands on those, if you haven't already.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	3. Ch 2: The First Dance

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Two<strong>

**The First Dance**

Cho descended the stone staircase that led to the school Entrance Hall from Ravenclaw tower along with Marietta before coming to a full stop just before they had reached the bottom. She could not remember the room being as crowded as it was. Bodies all over the place. So many people about that it would be difficult to figure out just how many there were before her very eyes. Granted there were students from three schools taking up every inch that was available, she was still impressed with how many could fit inside. The Hogwarts faculty desperately doing all that they could to sternly prevent any one from entering the Great Hall before it was eight o'clock while trying to maintain a sense of calm and patience within all the rowdiness and anxiousness surrounding them. Both girls looked at one another, each raising a concerned brow, and quietly agreed to simply wait until they either saw their partners or when the room became less crowded.

As she waited, Cho took a moment to once more examine herself as best as she could without the assistance of a mirror. She was wearing a silver and white Asian-style dress robe made of polyester. It was simple, accentuated her figure just fine, and was provided with a complimentary piece with overlong sleeves, which she was wearing given the winter temperatures that lingered during Christmas. The back of her hair was tied up into a ponytail near the top of her head, held together by a self-tied knot where two pink hair sticks were placed. The front of her hair was combed to her right with a loose bang dripping near her right eye and a single strand of hair appearing next to her left eye. Her cheeks had a couple dabs of powder and she wore a nice, even shade of lipstick so that her lips would appear red. Cho was quite sure that she looked fine enough for the festivities that would take place in moments.

Marietta, on the other hand, was much more self-conscious about the way she looked and continued to fret about even the tiniest of details. She wore a rather ravishing blue Victorian-style dress made of silk with a lace blouse and the skirt being tiered. Despite the weather, she was making sure her cleavage would at least be visible, much to Cho's chagrin that her friend really should not have bothered. As if it would help against the cold, she wore white elbow length gloves also made of silk. Marietta's brunette hair had sausage curls in the front and tied up in a bun in the back. She did not use a lot of powder, but made sure to emphasize that her cheeks were rosy, and her lips were luscious red, more so than Cho. There was little doubt that Marietta put a lot of thought, time, and effort into looking the way she did.

"Do you see him?" Marietta asked Cho nervously. "Has he shown up yet? Is he looking for me?" It was quite apparent that Marietta was treating this night as perhaps the most important she would ever have. She was going to be the partner of a Triwizard Tournament Champion, thus allowing her to be, if only in part, the center of attention. There was also the little known fact that she was quite attracted to Cedric Diggory, even before he asked her to the Yule Ball.

"No, I don't see him," Cho replied, letting out a sigh, yet also wearing an amused grin. "I can't even tell, really, with all of these people in the way. The faces are starting to look the same to me."

"I just hope he doesn't think I over did it with the hair," Marietta uttered, still fretting over the way she looked. "Maybe doing the sausage curls was a bad idea."

"Marietta, you look stunning," Cho stated, trying to ease her friend. "He will like the way you look, okay?"

"Oh, I hope you're right," Marietta responded, letting out a heavy sigh. Turning on a dime, she then started to squeal in a low voice. "I can hardly wait! This is so exciting!"

"It sure is, girls," a voice proclaimed from behind. The two looked over to see none other than Roger Davies, Captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, descending down the stairs looking as dashing and as handsome as ever. "After all, it's not every day Hogwarts hosts such a formal function as this."

By his own right, Roger was a very intelligent person. He earned his placement in Ravenclaw with high academic marks. But where he was truly brilliant was in two subjects. Quidditch and girls. With Quidditch, he was a talented Chaser and an equally talented leader. He was so good that clubs all throughout Europe were already sending him letters to sign with them once he was finished at Hogwarts. Outside of Quidditch, he was better known as quite the charmer. The list of girls he had dated was long enough to wrap around the base of Ravenclaw tower. To him, all girls were beautiful no matter their age, height, weight, size, shape, house, handicap, if they were from a Wizarding family or a family of Muggles. If some one dared him to, he would have no reservations asking out any girl for at least one date. Cho was one of the few exceptions, largely due to his feeling awkward at the thought of going out with some one on the Quidditch house team, even though she was a girl.

Like many times before, Cho could sense a bit of jealousy coming from Marietta just by looking at Roger for a few seconds. It took her hours to get ready for the Yule Ball. Roger probably took fifteen minutes. And yet he still looked like the most handsome individual in the room. He was wearing a stylish male dress robe that was black with a tinge of dark blue, his white bow tie as perfectly formed as one could ever hope for, and his hair combed just right without showing any sign of loose strands sticking out. Marietta often wondered how he could possibly make it look so easy and even went so far as to accuse him once of discovering some potion or magic trick. Roger had responded by merely chuckling in amusement and noting that he just had a knack for knowing what girls liked.

"Hey, Captain," Cho said to Roger. It had become customary for every one on the Ravenclaw team to address Roger as Captain no matter where they were and what they were doing.

"Cho, Marietta," Roger said, nodding his head to each girl. He then fixed his attention on Cho. "My, my. I never thought I'd see the day. Cho Chang in a dress. This truly is a special occasion." This earned him a back-handed slap to the stomach from Cho. He merely chuckled in response. Being treated like one of the boys meant that she had to endure the boyish teasing and ribbings she received from the team. She had fit in rather well that they some times forgot she was a girl and were amused whenever she appeared as such.

"Must you act like a prat on this of all nights, Roger?" Marietta asked through gritted teeth. She was generally civil with Roger, usually out of house pride. But tonight saw Marietta with little tolerance for tomfoolery. Believing that every little thing had to turn out perfect and did not want any one, even the Captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, to spoil the moment with childish antics.

"Snippy, I see," Roger noted with amusement. "Never imagined being partnered with Do-Goody was as important as you're making it out to be." Do-Goody was the nickname the Ravenclaw Quidditch team gave to Cedric in place of his last name. It was obviously based on his apparent reputation for being a nice guy.

"You better not say that in front of him or so help me, Roger, I will curse you into a lobotomy," Marietta threatened sternly, fixing a death glare upon him.

"Marietta," Cho said, interjecting herself into the conversation before it got out of control. "Take a deep breath and settle down, okay? Your nerves are getting the best of you." She watched as her friend reluctantly did as she requested and eased herself into a more relaxed state. Cho let out a sigh of relief and then turned to Roger curiously. "So, who's the lucky girl you've doomed with you charms tonight?"

"Actually, it seems I am the lucky one as it was she who charmed me," Roger began to answer rather proudly. "I'll be with Fleur Delacour."

"Really?" Marietta nearly cried in a tone that made it clear she was extremely upset. "You just had to hook up with her?" Any chance for Marietta to stand out at the Yule Ball had been greatly diminished now that she knew two of the most handsome and beautiful students from either of the three schools were partnering together. Cho restrained herself from letting out even the lightest of laughs for the sake of her friend.

"What, you would rather she be with some one like Draco Malfoy?" Roger responded with a chuckle. Both Cho and Marietta stared at him, looking rather put off that he would dare come up with such an idea. "How uncomfortable would that be? Him and Fleur together. That's the kind of stuff nightmares are made of."

"Stop talking, Roger," Marietta demanded. "You are making things so much worse just by opening your mouth." This time, Cho could not contain her laughter and let a soft one out before quickly covering her mouth with her right hand.

"Still would have been quite interesting, though," Roger noted in a curious manner. "I mean, all the other Seekers in the school will be front and center for the first dance. Do-Goody is with you. Cho is with Harry Potter. Had Draco partnered with Fleur, it would have completed the full set with a star Seeker like Viktor Krum added as a bonus."

Cho was rather surprised that she had not come to the same conclusion that Roger did before. She was the Ravenclaw Seeker, Harry was the Gryffindor Seeker, and Cedric was the Hufflepuff Seeker. The only school Seeker who would not be on display either as one of or partnered with a Triwizard Champion was Draco Malfoy from Slytherin. And the only way he would have been able to join the rest of them would be if he had partnered with a Triwizard Champion like Fleur Delacour, who instead was partnered with Roger. She started to remember some thing her godfather once told her about Quidditch in general. Whether it was on or off the pitch, the game would always surprise its players by injecting itself into their lives when they least expect it. Thinking about that and how it was being applied to tonight left a smile on her face.

"Well girls, I believe it's time to put on our game faces," Roger said rather suddenly after taking a deep breath and positioning himself to stand upright. "I believe Professor McGonagall is having the Triwizard Champions and their partners stand by near the entrance. Shall we join them?"

Marietta gasped and then immediately began to run through a last second check of her appearance, brushing over her dress to remove wrinkles, making sure her hair was straight. Doing every thing that she could do to be at her absolute best. And to think, this was before the actual event even started. Cho could not possibly imagine just how her friend would be able to maintain any sense of composure once the festivities began.

It was then that some thing very peculiar happened. Some thing that Cho, quite frankly, was not expecting. She suddenly felt a twinge, albeit a slight one, of nervousness in her stomach. One that was similar, in some respects, to how she was feeling moments before she competed in her very first official Quidditch match. Yet it was still different enough to seem rather foreign. For the first time for as long as she could remember, she was starting to feel nervous about being around a boy. Which was strange and unusual for her given how she was often hanging around other boys many times. How could this suddenly feel any different?

Pulling her sleeves back slightly, enough for them to just be over the top of her wrists, Cho took a deep breath and followed Roger and Marietta into wading their way through the sea of humanity that crowded the Entrance Hall. As she passed by every fancifully dressed student that was in her way, she could not help but suspect that there were a few whispers coming from other girls. Particularly the ones that she knew were from Ravenclaw. She had a pretty good idea what they were whispering about. They recognized her as the girl Harry Potter would be dancing with in the Yule Ball. It was then that she realized some thing that she felt she probably should have expected the minute she agreed to be his partner. And it was probably the main reason for her suddenly starting to feel as nervous as she was. For many girls would have done any thing to be in the position that she was in.

To dance with The Boy Who Lived.

She had never imagined just how intimidating that position turned out to be.

* * *

><p>There was one thing Harry was sure he did not have to worry about. He did not have to worry about looking absolutely ridiculous in front of so many people. He wore a seemingly casual male dress robe with a white bow tie and his hair managed to remain combed and neat for once as opposed to being all shaggy and untidy like it usually was. Nevertheless, he imagined that, as a Triwizard Champion, he was probably expected to look more grandeur than every one else. To look so plain would hardly be befitting of his title. Still, at least he did not look like his poor dear friend Ron Weasley. He could not bring himself to laugh at Ron's misfortune, even if he wanted to. It was so appalling that it made him feel quite sorry for him actually.<p>

"Leave it alone!" Harry whispered firmly, trying to stop Ron from messing with his dress robe and making himself look any worse than he already did. Ron continued to pout and groan even when he finally did as he was told.

The two friends were just reaching the bottom of the stone staircase that had led them out of Gryffindor tower and into the Entrance Hall. Before them were so many students that they could hardly begin to guess a possible number for how many there were. It did little to ease Ron, who was quite sure that it would not be long before attention was drawn to him and his revolting dress robe. Harry decided to stick as close to his friend as possible, doing whatever he could to calm him down before the Yule Ball officially began.

"Poor kid," Ron muttered, looking to change the subject as quickly as he could. "I bet she's alone in her room, crying her eyes out."

"Who?" Harry asked curiously with a brow raised.

"Hermione, of course," Ron answered. The change in topic worked as it left him oblivious to the strange, bewildered, and amusing stares he was otherwise receiving from the other students they were passing by. "Come on, Harry. Why do you think she wouldn't tell us who she's coming with?"

"Because we'd take the mickey out of her if she did," Harry replied honestly. Apparently that was not the same reason his friend had in mind.

"Nobody asked her," Ron stated rather bluntly. "Would've taken her myself if she wasn't so bloody proud."

Harry was not sure if he agreed with this. Sure Hermione was quite determined for whatever reason to not reveal who asked her to the Yule Ball whenever any one asked her, but he could not imagine the thought that she would be crying in her room over the thought of not being asked out. He was positive that there were enough male friends who would have asked her, not just Ron and himself. Although, now that he thought about it a little, most of the boys he knew were friends with them were already going with some one else. Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan. Even Neville Longbottom was going with some one, who Harry managed to learn was none other than Ron's little sister Ginny. Yet surely she was going to be with some one at the Yule Ball.

"There he is!" a familiar sound voice cried. One that made Ron turn green with sickness.

Given that they were twins, Harry would still often times not be able to figure out if the speaker was Fred or George, two of Ron's older brothers, whenever they entered suddenly as they did. The twins obviously looked alike from the way they combed their hair to the exact color of their dress robes matching the same color of dark scarlet. And both were ginning from ear to ear at the sight of their little brother in the dress robe he was wearing. No doubt they found it extremely hilarious. Ron glared at them as if doing so would cause bad things to happen to them.

"Don't you look dashing, eh Ron?" one of the twins teased. If Harry had to guess, he figured the speaker was George. He would be proven correct. "I can't wait to see both Parvati and Padma's faces when we go up to meet them." With some help from Harry, he managed to arrange for Ron to be able to go to the Yule Ball with some one. He convinced the Patil twins to agree to partner with Ron and George as they were getting quite desperate to go with any one by the time he approached them. George would partner with Parvati and Ron would partner with Padma. Fred was already going with Angelina Johnson.

"Piss off," Ron grumbled under his breath gloomily.

"Cheer up, Ron!" Fred proclaimed. "You don't have to worry about making a fool out of yourself any more than you already have. But then again, you're not that good of a dancer either." The twin brothers began to laugh heartily. Ron merely responded by giving them both the Longbowman Salute.

"There you are, Potter," another familiar voice called. Harry turned to find the new speaker, Professor Minerva McGonagall, approaching him. She looked about as fanciful as he expected her to be. A simple look of neat refinement so as to maintain her authoritative presence. "Your partner, Miss Chang, is waiting with the other champions and their partners near the entrance." The mere mention of the name Cho Chang, even if only by her last name, caused Harry's heart to skip a beat. "Need I remind you that it's traditional that the three champions… well, in this case, four… are the first to dance."

"No," Harry managed to utter rather breathlessly. It seemed as though he had suddenly remembered that the person he was going to the Yule Ball with was the very girl he had been smitten with for the past year. More importantly, it also meant that they would be dancing in mere moments. In front of every one. "Of course not, professor. How could I forget?" He was not sure if he was blushing or not, but he was quite certain that there was a chance he might be throwing up in a few moments.

"As for you… three…" Professor McGonagall started to say to the three Weasley brothers before her voice trailed off upon seeing the dress robe Ron wore. Ron started to blanch while his older twin brothers sniggered unmercifully behind his back as their transfiguration professor made a seemingly reluctant attempt to tidy up his appearance a little. She then cleared her throat and continued to speak. "I, uh… I suggest the three of you find your partners quickly and proceed into the Great Hall. The champions and their partners won't enter until every one else is inside." She looked up, presumably to look away from Ron's dress robe for a moment, and appeared to have spotted some one she perhaps needed to speak to. "Oh, there you are!" Seconds later, she was walking away from them to meet up with whomever it was she saw.

"Come on, Ron," George said gleefully as he grabbed his younger brother's arm. "Let's go find our lovely ladies and show them what a handsome fellow you are."

Ron gave Harry a quick glance, looking as though he was being taken to his execution rather than going to a dance, before he was dragged out of view by his brothers. Harry was left alone for a brief moment, looking off in the direction the Weasleys went. He then let out a heavy sigh and looked to find where he was supposed to be with the other Triwizard Champions.

After moving perhaps three feet at best, he caught sight of the others. First there was Viktor Krum, the Durmstrang champion, looking very much like a man of great stature and importance. Wearing a red jacket with black pants, white gloves, and a red cloak with fur edgings that was thrown over his left shoulder alone, he almost appeared as though he was a military man rather than a student. To Harry's curious surprise, Viktor seemed to be looking quite anxious. Perhaps waiting for his partner to arrive, whoever it was. Harry then saw Fleur Delacour, the Beauxbatons champion. There was no denying that she was as radiant and beautiful as a girl could ever be. Wearing a flowing silver satin dress with her right strap so thin that it was hardly visible at first glance. Her silvery-blonde hair brushed at the front to her right while the back was tied into a bun held by a shimmering brooch. With her, Harry recognized, was Roger Davies, Captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Looking handsome and dashing, he certainly appeared to match perfectly with some one like Fleur. Harry then found Cedric Diggory, the other Hogwarts champion aside from himself. Diggory looked pleasant and charming, wearing a black bow tie as opposed to white. He seemed rather humbled at being where he was, almost as though he felt like he really did not belong. With him was a girl Harry was not entirely familiar with. She was certainly trying to look ravishing in the dress robe she wore, though he was not sure her hair worked with her overall appearance.

Finally, his eyes came upon Cho Chang. His partner. Just as he brought his attention to her, he noticed that she too appeared to have caught sight of him. In that moment, it seemed to Harry that there was nothing else but just the two of them. Facing one another, a dozen feet or so apart, and their surroundings seemingly disappearing from view. He was in awe, working very hard to keep himself from dropping his jaw at the beautiful vision that he beheld. Forget Fleur Delacour, Cho Chang was the best looking girl he had ever seen. Truly an angel who had descended from the Heavens just to dance with him. How could he have ever been so lucky to be with her tonight? And her smile, oh that smile of hers. It took his breath away, melted his heart, and enchanted him the likes of which he had never thought possible.

It seemed as though moments, minutes, maybe even hours had passed before Cho, who was still smiling that precious smile, walked toward him. The way he saw it, she was not so much walking as gliding. The closer she came, the faster his heart was beating in his chest. This could not possibly be real. It had to be a dream. A fantastic, yet possibly cruel dream that he would wake up from and discover that he was sadly mistaken at ever thinking that he would be dancing with her of all people. But then she was less than a foot away from him, looking straight into his green eyes. That smile never once flinching.

"Hello, Harry," she said. It was like he was suddenly being thrust into an impromptu exam, one he could not have possibly had any sort of time to study for. This was a test that made him feel as though he could not risk failing. He did not want to think about the consequences for not passing.

"Hello, Cho," he said breathlessly. Some how, he managed to maintain a sense of composure through all of that. His knees did not buckle, he did not fidget, his pants did not suddenly unbuckle and drop to his ankles. Any form of potential humiliation did not occur. More impressively, he did not let out a squeak when he spoke to her. So far so good.

"Feeling nervous?" she asked. This was a difficult question to answer. He was not entirely sure what would possibly be the best reply to go with. If he said yes, he was afraid it would make him look foolish. If he said no, it might make him come off as being stiff and without feeling. At least, those were the problems he thought he faced with regards to answering her question.

"A bit," he uttered in response. An answer he hoped would make it sound as though that, while he was nervous, he was not too nervous. It helped that he still managed to keep his composure.

"That was probably a silly question to ask, any way," she said, letting out a soft laugh. Or was it a giggle. He could never tell the difference. "How could you not be nervous? I mean, we're going to be dancing in front of every one in a minute, right?" Now came another problem. How should he respond to her after she said that? Should he say some thing? Should he say nothing? If he should say some thing, what should he say? He could not understand how in the world talking to her was as difficult as it was. He could carry on a casual conversation with any other girl like Hermione just fine. So why was he experiencing this kind of trouble in speaking even a single word to Cho?

"Well, I wouldn't say it was entirely silly," he said, trying to form a smile of his own and hopefully let out a chuckle. He watched as she dipped her head just slightly, her eyes still fixed upon him. Her smile did not fade. It seemed like his response worked. He just did not know for sure.

"Come along this way," he suddenly heard Professor McGonagall say. Breaking the spell that he had been under as his surroundings were now quite visible. They were in the Entrance Hall again. And yet Cho still looked more beautiful to him than some one like Fleur Delacour. She gave a slight shrug, still maintaining her smile, before they were both hurried by Professor McGonagall to join the others. "Now, I need you all to line up in the procession, please. Oh, you are very late."

As they were moving toward the gigantic wooden double doors that would lead into the Great Hall, Harry began to notice some thing. He nearly gasped upon feeling it, knowing full well what it was. Cho had gently wrapped her right arm into his left arm, placing her left hand onto his bicep. It took a great deal to keep himself from blushing, though he knew he was fighting a losing battle on that front. When they finally came to a stop right behind Cedric and his partner, Harry quickly looked over at Cho. That smile of hers. Not once had it dropped tonight. She looked up at him, possibly beaming with anticipation. If only he could better understand girls and read their expressions so that he could figure out what they were thinking. Lacking any sort of knowledge in that department was making him that much more nervous. And yet that smile she wore. He was suddenly starting to ease just a little so long as he kept his attention squarely on her and that smile. How beautiful she looked with it.

It was when they looked away that Harry remembered some thing. Some thing awfully dreadful. Any minute now, they were going to be let into the Great Hall. And before every one else inside, students and faculty from all three schools present for the Triwizard Tournament, they were going to open the Yule Ball with a dance. He was going to be dancing with Cho Chang, the most beautiful girl in all of Hogwarts.

Only he still did not know how to dance.

* * *

><p>Cho was taken aback when she entered the Great Hall, arm in arm with Harry. Even though she had lived in a world surrounded by magic all her life, there were still times when sights, such as the one before her, left her in amazement. Gone were the rectangular house tables. In their place were maybe a hundred or so smaller circular tables, each with a lit lantern at the center, that could probably sit a dozen people. The walls had been covered with sparkling silver and light blue frost, evoking the look of a beautiful ice cave. Hundreds of garlands of mistletoe and ivy crossed the starry black ceiling above, providing the elegance of what could very well be the setting of a seemingly romantic evening.<p>

The top table saw the three headmasters of the competing schools seated at the center, to either side of them was Ludvic Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports at the Ministry of Magic, and a young man who appeared to be substituting for Bartemius Crouch Sr., Head of International Magical Cooperation. On either side of the five seated officials were eight empty chairs, four on one end and four on the other. Clearly this would be where the Triwizard Champions and their partners would be seated when it was time to dine. But first, they had to dance.

As the champions and their partners made their way toward the center of the Great Hall, all of the other students were letting out loud and rousing applauds. A lot of the cheering came from those who were from Ravenclaw, Cho noticed. Seeing three of their own taking center stage, house pride had overtaken them. Cho wanted to roll her eyes out of embarrassment, but merely put on a smile. It was a nice gesture she appreciated. She could see that Marietta was soaking in all of the admiration that she was clearly apart of. Roger did not seem to care, fixing his eyes upon Fleur the whole time.

As they were getting closer and closer to the center of the room, upon which they would be officially opening the event with a dance, Cho started to feel some fidgeting. She knew that she was not the one causing this, so it was obviously coming from Harry. She looked over, seeing him becoming paler and paler with each step. It seemed as though any second now he was going to start sweating profusely, almost like turning into an instant waterfall. A continuation, perhaps, of the anxiety she saw him display when he was asking her to be his partner at the Yule Ball. He was turning into a nervous wreck right before her eyes. Some thing she had never thought would be the case for some one like him. If the stories and gossip that floated around were true, he never experienced fear. So why was he experiencing it now?

His nervousness started to really intensify as they arrived at the center of the room. The crowd of neatly dressed students creating an enclosure around them and the other champions, giving them enough room to dance upon. All eyes were truly upon them. Harry, meanwhile, looked as though he was about to have a heart-attack and did not know how to convey it. His green eyes darting left and right very rapidly, though Cho could tell that he managed to always keep her in his line of sight throughout as they began to position themselves before one another.

"You alright, Harry?" she asked, raising a curious brow.

The second she talked, Harry gasped and froze perfectly still, facing her straight on. He was completely white with terror except for his cheeks, which were crimson red. Even though only a mere second had passed, it seemed like an eternity before he finally made any sort of response. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath.

"I…" he started to say in a whisper before pausing. Even with how quiet he was being, he sounded rather off key. "_I never danced before!_"

Cho had this urge to laugh, but restrained herself enough to merely exhale a very light coughing sound. She was nevertheless stunned with disbelief. This was Harry Potter standing before her. Gryffindor Seeker, Triwizard Champion. The Boy Who Lived. Just a month ago, he went face to face with a Hungarian Horntail. And yet all of that made little to no difference whatsoever to him. In mere moments, he was going to be dancing with her. In public. That was what was putting him on the edge. That was what was making him all tense with anxiety. He was scared to death of dancing. For the first time. With the one girl he appeared to be attracted to. In front of hundreds of students from three different schools. He might as well have another go with the dragon.

"Not once?" she managed to question in response, still amazed and perplexed at the revelation being presented to her

"I've only practiced once when Professor McGonagall announced the Yule Ball," he explained in a quiet, yet hurried voice.

He was clearly in a state of panic. At any minute, he was either going to faint or throw up. Maybe even both. And with the music about to play in any second, Cho knew that she had to calm him down and fast. Having a dance partner who was self-conscious was one thing, but this was a whole new level of desperation.

"How much do you remember?" she asked. It was not the most helpful question to go with entirely, but, under the circumstances, it was the most necessary. She needed to know how much he knew in order to put some thing together as quickly as possible. The applauds were starting to die down.

"I think I kind of know the steps maybe," he answered, becoming more and more agitated with each passing second. "I just can't remember the order. I mean, they keep getting mixed up in my head of when to do what and what comes after." This would have been a simple problem to solve had she had more time to work with. Instead, there was literally no time. She was going to have to make do with this and hope for the best.

"Don't worry," she said rather breathlessly. "We will get through this just fine, okay? Just keep your eyes on mine. Don't ever look away from my eyes until the song they play finishes." She watched as his green eyes widened for a moment. Not having to look away from her would surely cause his nervousness to increase. But if they had any shot of getting through this first dance without fumbling too badly, it will have to do. He nodded and fixed all of his attention upon her. "Good. Now you need to take my waist and quick."

"What?" Harry squeaked. His cheeks were now burning with the most intense shade of pink Cho had ever seen. Either he had completely forgotten about how exactly two people were going to dance together or he was just reacting to the idea of having to place a hand upon her waist at all. Either way, he just reached the point of nervousness that he probably was never going to recover from.

"Harry, now!" she whispered, nearly in a commanding tone.

Very gently and very cautiously, he placed his right hand upon her left waist. She could almost feel how the sensation of just making physical contact with her was starting to make his entire body shiver. If she had to guess, his heart was beating so fast that it would likely burst out of his chest at any second. He was breathing heavier and heavier. Cho then slipped her right hand into his left hand, bringing them up to face level while she quickly placed her left hand upon his right shoulder. The pink on his cheeks were starting to spread further out to other parts of his face. Sweat was slowly beginning to run visibly from underneath his hair. The pupils in his eyes shrank into tiny little black dots. And it seemed like he suddenly had the urge to stop breathing.

"Listen to the music," she added in a whisper, just as the music was indeed about to begin playing. She spoke in a soothing tone, one that she hoped would help calm him down. "Listen to the rhythm. You remember the first thing to do in the dance, right?" He nodded as best as he could given just close to paralyzation he was in. "Don't rush into it. Just follow the rhythm. Let it flow through you. I will tell you what comes next just before you need to do it, okay?" Harry nodded again. For a moment, drops of sweat had almost flown off his head when it moved.

And then she formed a simple, gentle smile. One that she could see left him absolutely breathless. All the anxiety, all the worry, all the nervousness. They had suddenly vanished. Or at least stopped just long enough for him to be in an instant state of relaxation. She could feel his hands becoming less tense and more calm. The intensity of his blushing decreased, though a light shade of pink still remained on his cheek. His eyes were fixed exclusively upon her eyes. In this one moment, he was at peace.

"Shall we dance?" Cho asked, speaking just slightly above a whisper.

"Yes, please," he answered breathlessly.

They were hardly the best dancing couple by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, when compared to the other three couples dancing at the moment, they were nothing special. Fortunately, it appeared that no one really seemed to notice. They were too busy eyeing with envy at Roger and Fleur as they performed with such grace and elegance that it looked as perfect as perfection could ever appear. And if they were not looking at them, they were certainly looking at Hermione Granger, who was dancing with Viktor Krum. No one could have believed that her, of all people, was as beautiful as she was. Even Harry was taken by surprise to see his friend as such earlier when she sheepishly descended the stone staircase that led her from Gryffindor tower to the Entrance Hall. She was wearing a poly blend chiffon with cascading waves of fabric that went from pink to lavender. Her usually bushy hair was now sleek and shiny, twisted into a knot at the back of her head. Whether she meant to or not, she was starting to draw a great deal of attention upon herself. Attention that Cho and Harry were more than willingly to give up to the others.

As the dance progressed, so did his confidence in being able to perform it without feeling worried. A smile was slowly starting to form on his lips. His eyes never once looking away from hers. The rhythm of the music dictating their pace every step of the way. They would be the only two people to remember their dance together. No one else would hardly be able to recall it ever happening. And they were very content with that. This was a memory that they alone would be able to share. This one moment in time. When Cho Chang helped Harry Potter overcome his fear of dancing with her in public.

In time, the music was coming to an end. Cho and Harry continued to remain in step with the rhythm, slowing down with it until they finally came to a stop once the final, quavering note from a bagpipe sounded. They maintained eye contact with one another. Their hands stayed where they were. Lost in their own world, their own place in time while their surroundings disappeared in a blur. The cheering and applauds from the other students fading into oblivion. Nothing else mattered except the two of them, alone together.

And so it was that Harry Potter and Cho Chang had their first dance.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> This chapter took longer to finish than I thought. A little over a week ago, just as I was finishing up writing the first part, the file got corrupted. In the end, I had to start all over. Which was just as well because I had some time to think about that original fist part and felt that it clearly did not work. What was also causing the chapter to take a little longer to finish was WonderCon taking place this past weekend in Anaheim, which I attended and had a great time at. Thus I found myself getting delayed in getting through this chapter. Hopefully you guys liked it.

Going through the reviews that I have received so far, it appears there are split feelings about how Hedwig was written in the original version. While the plan is still to focus primarily on Harry and Cho throughout, chances are good that I will likely be incorporating outside elements into the narrative. At least from Harry and Cho's perspective. As for the Hedwig transformation, I will say that I'm still on the fence with how much, if any, will be used. A side story that may or may not be cut entirely. Whatever decision I come to with regards to its inclusion, it certainly has me wondering how exactly to include it. When you have seemingly half the readers enjoying it and the other half despising it, you do tend to rethink about ideas when you are in the process of rebooting the story from the beginning. So I will put it up to a vote. Head over to my bio page and look for the poll that I will have up. Should I make mention of Hedwig's transformation into Helena Willows? I'm leaving it up to you guys to help me decide.

_c-c-clumsy - Off topic, but the Cho/Harry ff section is more lively since this reboot. Hmm.._

That is rather flattering. And I am really happy about that because I do like to read other Cho/Harry stories, wanting to see how other people write them as a couple. Now if we can just get the art community to do the same.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	4. Ch 3: Getting Acquainted with Friends

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

**Getting Acquainted with Friends**

Harry was hardly paying any sort of attention to his surroundings. He took no heed to the fact that he was sitting at the top table in the Great Hall. That also at the table were the other Triwizard Champions and their partners. That there was also the three headmasters of the schools participating in the Triwizard Tournament, which included Hogwarts Headmaster Professor Dumbledore. That two officials from the Ministry of Magic were also present, one of whom was Percy Weasley, the third eldest brother of his friend Ron, in place of a curiously absent Mr. Crouch. Nor that he had barely been touching the dinner that was present on the glittering golden plate in front of him. Quite frankly, his attention was fixed upon one thing and one thing only. The girl sitting next to him. His partner, Cho.

He watched her, having what appeared to be a very friendly chat with the girl who was partnered with Cedric Diggory. Just to gaze at her was enchanting. Her light, hardly tanned skin that seemed to glow. Her straight black hair that was neatly tied up into a small ponytail in the back while loose strands in the front hung as if to frame her face. Her lips colored in red for the night curving perfectly to form a majestic smile that he had fallen for. Even hearing her gentle Scottish accent when she spoke. If only he could spend forever taking in her natural beauty.

After what seemed like a long while, she turned to face him. Her smile ever present, not once flinching as soon as she had caught sight of him. And their eyes met. Her chocolate brown eyes locked with his almond green eyes. Harry was certain that he was probably blushing a rather light shade of pink on his cheeks. He could certainly feel the warmth of them. Nevertheless, he did not dare look away. Fearful that doing so would some how leave a bad impression upon her. Besides, he wanted to keep looking at her. He wanted to keep gazing into her eyes. To be lost in them and, perhaps for once, not have a care in the world about any thing else.

"Are you enjoying your dinner?" she asked, breaking the silence that had lingered between them. Truth be told, only a few short seconds had lasted between when she turned to face him and when she started to speak. But it sure did seem to him like they were staring at one another for a good while.

"Oh, yeah!" he managed to utter breathlessly. "Very delicious, really." His brain was not functioning properly at the moment. He had completely forgotten that he had only taken two, maybe even three bites of his dinner and it was surely cold by now. He had no idea how long he had spent just gazing at Cho since they sat down following the first dance. And yet he was hardly bothered by this fact.

"It is a wonderful dinner," she said, letting out a soft laugh. "I honestly can't remember the last time it ever tasted this good."

"Same here," he said, following along to whatever beat she was drumming. Virtually any sense of reason he had going into the Yule Ball tonight had since checked out. He was going to have very little control over whatever came out of his mouth. He prayed that it did not lead to any thing frightfully embarrassing fairly soon.

"Marietta seems to think such cooking could give a world-class chef like Rodrigo del Santiago a run for his money, but I'm a little skeptical about that," she added. Harry would like nothing more than for this conversation to keep going. Just to hear her talk was absolutely soothing to his ears.

"Marietta?" he asked curiously. He figured already that she was probably the girl Cho had been speaking to moments ago. Still, it was a way for their own conversation to keep going.

"My friend," Cho answered, confirming his guess as to the identity of the girl with a slight cock of her head. "Cedric's partner tonight. You would not believe just how elated she is right now to be where she is at." So the girl partnered with Cedric was a friend of Cho. It made Harry wonder about some thing, but was rather hesitant to bring it up.

"Is that right?" he noted. "Is it because she is partnered with a Triwizard Champion tonight or is it because she gets to be with Cedric?" He decided against rushing into figuring out the answer to the question that was starting to grow in his mind. He still was not sure being forward with her regarding such an idea would be all that pleasant to hear.

"A little bit of both, actually," she replied, shifting her lips so that her smile would appear in a more sly fashion. "I cannot recall when exactly she started becoming smitten with him, but it has been since prior to the start of term at the very least. She just would not admit it until after he asked her to tonight's ball. She is certainly very happy to be getting a share of the spotlight tonight since he's a Triwizard Champion, given how hard it is to be the center of attention around here as of late."

"Really?" he uttered with light sarcasm. "I haven't noticed." He felt quite fortunate that she let out a gentle laugh along with him after his attempt at being witty. It was one thing when he would be such to his friends. It was another thing entirely when trying to impress her. He did not know that much about her and therefore was not sure how she would take to his manner of being funny.

"You should have seen how upset she was when we found out just recently that Roger was partnered with Fleur Delacour," Cho said, still grinning. "It was like this was supposed to be her night to steal the thunder from every one here and then he ruins it by looking as dashing as he does, thereby being extremely complimentary with Fleur to the point of being this near perfect looking couple. I'm telling you, if he wasn't the Captain of our house Quidditch team, she would have tried to hurt him badly." He laughed along with her, having found the idea quite humorous indeed. Now he was starting to relax a little, easing some of the tension he had been feeling throughout most of the night. To be able to have a nice, pleasant conversation with Cho and not feel embarrassed. "Then Hermione Granger appeared. She tried to hide it, but I could tell Marietta was absolutely livid. Any chance of being the stand-out had vanished with how really wonderful looking Hermione is tonight."

"Tell me about it," Harry respond, rather oblivious that he had just said that. "I never really knew she had it in her to look that good, really." In an instant, he suddenly realized the words he had spoken. He was just about ready to kick himself mentally. While Hermione was one of his dearest friends, he was certain any comment he made about her would give off the awful impression that he was smitten with her. Clearly not some thing he wanted Cho to believe. As if he need to further display that he was hardly in a focused state of mind, he immediately began stuffing his face with his dinner.

"So, you never thought of Hermione as being good looking, eh?" Cho began to respond. The tone of her voice worried him, as did her raising brow and her lips curling into a smirk. Though it lasted for only a second a two, her silent pause was daunting enough to force him to swallow his food very nervously. "Is this because she is a Muggle and is therefore not supposed to be more beautiful than any other wizard-born girl?" If his brain had been working properly, he just might have caught on to the fact that she was merely teasing him. Unfortunately, he was in a near state of panic that he imagined he was giving her one too many unpleasant impressions about himself. Resulting in the seemingly foolish need to correct them and fast.

"Wh-What?" he uttered, almost aghast at the question she had asked him. His reaction was hardly the best possible way to go about responding to her. And it was certainly only going to go downhill from there. "N-No, of course not. I would never think that way. I've been living with Muggles for most of my life and I'm also positive that wizard-born are no better than Muggles just as Muggles are no worst than wizard-born. And I only said that I never thought Hermione had it in her to look as good as she does tonight because she's my friend and I never really thought of her as being attractive even though she is being attractive tonight, but that is not really the way I feel about her. I mean, you're my partner tonight, not her, and all that nonsense that Rita Skeeter has been publishing in the Daily Prophet about her being my secret heartache is a load of rubbish, honestly, you're really beautiful tonight, Cho."

He was very close to slapping himself in order to stop talking before being able to do so alternatively by having his brain shut down completely. His heart had once again started pounding faster and harder against his chest. He had blanched so terribly that he was quite sure that he was on the verge of fainting from blood not flowing properly to the brain. Harry had never in his life ever felt so embarrassed. The manner in which he had just presented himself was absolutely revolting. He had been fooling himself into ever believing that he not only had the nerve to consider being with a girl like Cho, but that he would also leave, at the very least, a seemingly positive impression of himself upon her that she might some day be a friend.

But her reaction left him quite stunned with bafflement. She started to laugh. Very gently, though it seemed it would have gotten louder had she not quickly covered her mouth with her napkin, though her lips were visible. They were curved in a bright smile, like the ones she had been wearing virtually the entire evening. It took a moment until she finally stopped laughing, clearing her throat lightly, before turning to face him. Her smile remained as she appeared to be looking at him in a way that only perplexed him. If he did not know any better, he figured that she was displaying a sense of admiration for him.

"You know, there are many ways to develop a mental image of the kind of person you are given all the stories that have been written, told, and gossiped over the last three or four years," she began to say. He still had no clue as to where she would be going with this. "But I am fairly sure that the majority of them do not explain the real Harry Potter underneath all of the fame and celebrity. You're really cute when you're being as nervous as you are now." Seconds later, she let out a slight, gentle laugh. He was certain it was because his cheeks were burning with an intense shade of pink. The only reaction he could possibly make after she had said that he looked cute.

He had been so worked up about how badly he thought he had presented himself that, in the end, he received a compliment. He might as well just faint right then and there. Conversing with the one girl he was attracted to was so much harder and much more nerve-wracking than having to contend with an exam or a Basilisk or Dementors or a dragon. In fact, he started to wonder some thing else. Why in the world was there not a class that could teach him how to speak with some one like Cho? At the very least, it would keep him from feeling as though he would have a heart-attack at any second.

Before he knew it, dinner had been finished. He had some how managed to clean off his plate before Professor Dumbledore kindly asked everyone to stand. He watched as the Hogwarts Headmaster made simple waves of his wand, resulting in nearly all of the tables to gracefully zoom to the back of the walls and leaving the floor of the Great Hall clear. Harry realized that they were going to be dancing again and his stomach suddenly felt heavier even after having had a hearty meal to eat. As a raising platform had been conjured into existence along the right wall, he nervously looked over to Cho. She merely looked back with a reassuring smile upon her face. His tension eased, if only slightly, knowing that she would continue to help him through the challenging ordeal he once again faced. Fortunately, it was not as nerve-wracking as before since it was no longer the first dance and it would not be exclusively the Triwizard Champions and their partners on the floor. They would just be starting the dance before others joined in.

"Remember, listen to the music and follow the rhythm, alright?" Cho whispered to him gently. He managed to put forth the best smile he could muster and nodded. There would be little need to worry too much for he knew that he was in good hands having a partner like her.

When the slow, mournful tunes from the Weird Sisters, a band no doubt hired to be the musical entertainment for the evening, began to play, Harry led Cho onto the brightly lit dance floor. He managed to catch sight of Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas waiving and sniggering at him along the way. Finding a spot to dance upon, he slowly and gently placed his right hand upon her waist and held her right hand in his left. When the right moment in the music came, they proceeded to dance. Again they were hardly the best dancing couple on the floor, but again it was not of concern to them. For it was not long before the Great Hall was covered with dancing couples. They were now dancing for their own enjoyment, not caring how they appeared to any one else.

* * *

><p>Cho was starting to have fun dancing with Harry. She could feel that his tension was easing, which allowed for him to be much more fluid with his movements and not quite as rigid as he had been in their first dance. He took to instructions very well and managed to learn on his feet, as it were. It helped that she was patient with him, not forcing or rushing him to move at a pace he was far from being comfortable with. Once he had reached a point of relaxation, she could sense the fun he himself was having. The flow in which he, at one point, twirled her into a spin before pulling her back into his arms was dazzling, even to her. He was starting to get the hang of dancing, having never done it before until tonight. It made her feel quite proud to be the one, of all people, to teach him.<p>

"Nice socks, Potter," a grizzled voice chuckled. Along with Harry, she looked over to see that the speaker was Alastor Moody, the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor for this year.

Cho generally regarded any and all Professors in Hogwarts with a great sense of admiration and respect. She did her best in learning as a means of honoring them and their abilities. To excel at any particular subject meant that she thought very highly of the Professor teaching it. Professor Moody was an interesting case. She definitely had great respect for him, but she was also rather uncomfortable being in his presence. If any thing, it was mostly because she felt intimidated by the battle scars he displayed. From the wooden leg to the large false eye that she had to admit was truly creepy, nearly every thing about the man told her that he was certainly some one not to mess with in any way, shape, or form. This opinion of him did not change seeing him dance with Professor Sinistra from Astronomy. Not when he was dancing an extremely ungainly two-step and she was nervously trying to avoid his wooden leg.

"Nice socks?" she asked Harry once Professor Moody had clunked away. She raised a curious brow and curved her lips in a sly smile while her eyes briefly glanced down toward his feet, looking to catch sight of these socks. Harry had formed a chuckle and grinned, seemingly about to play along with her.

"Christmas present," he responded. "Knitted for me by a house-elf named Dobby." Keeping to the rhythm of the music, he found an opportunity to lift up his right foot just slightly enough to flash her a peek at his sock. She did not see all of it, but she managed notice that it was green and there appeared to be objects on them. "The ones on the right are supposed to have Snitches. The left is red with broomsticks." They both laughed gently together. Being that they were both the Seekers for their respective house Quidditch teams, it would have been shameful for either of them to not get the message of the socks.

"You must certainly be quite the celebrity if even house-elves are giving you Christmas presents," she teased. Though she came from a wizard-born family with a mother who worked for the Ministry of Magic and a father who ran a well respected restaurant, she was not too familiar with house-elves in general. She only knew that the really wealthy used them as servants.

"Nah, just Dobby," Harry responded to her casually, still playing along. "It's a bit of a long story, really. But a couple years ago, he tried to warn me about some thing and I ended up repaying him since it was of help. We have been quite friendly with one another as a result." Cho widened her smile upon hearing this. It was nice to know that he was appreciative of any help he received and offered them kindness in return.

They continued to dance in silence through two more songs, during which she started to notice he was beginning to tense up again. It did not take her long to figure out why. With each new song that the Weird Sisters played, the tempo and rhythm began to pick up. The first few songs were rather appropriate for the the waltz, which was the form of dancing they had been performing from the start. However, she was recognizing, just as he had, that each progressive song was shifting in tune and pace. Becoming more ruckus as it were. Which would render the waltz a useless dance. Cho was not entirely familiar with the Weird Sisters and the music they generally played. Marietta would probably have a better idea. But she was sure that it was some thing that Harry would be completely uncomfortable with trying to dance to.

"We can stop dancing if you want," she said to him once the third song finished playing. His face flashed a sense of uncertainty before turning into relief. "I'm actually a little thirsty." That was not necessarily the truth, but it allowed for them to make up a reason for their exiting the dance floor should any one ask. It certainly sounded better than saying that Harry Potter was terrified of dancing any more than he had to. He quickly nodded his head, gently took her arm into his, and led her out of the way as the other students started to crowd together into on giant mass of bodies just as the Weird Sisters began to play their more signature tunes.

Ducking out of the way as quickly and as carefully as they could, she made sure she was locked tight with him so that they would not become suddenly separated in all the chaos that was happening. The music certainly was a much more rowdy affair than what had been played previously in the night. Students seemed to be jumping more than actually dancing to the rhythm. And if there were some who were dancing, it was hardly the kind that would be classical in nature. A good example was when they passed by one of the Weasley twins. Cho never could tell one twin from the other, they looked so much alike. Regardless of whether or not the twin was Fred or George Weasley, he was dancing with a girl Cho seemed to recall being Angelina Johnson, a Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Roger always made it a point for every one on the Ravenclaw team to remember the identities and positions of their opponents so that they could better prepare against them. Angelina was considered a serious tactical threat, some one who played the sport with such a competitive drive that was difficult to match. She and the Weasley twin appeared to be dancing together, but what they did could hardly be defined as proper dancing. They were moving so exuberantly that others had to back away or risk getting physically injured.

It was becoming more difficult to escape the insanity while more students were gathering into the crowd. They were also getting wilder and wilder. In trying to move through the incoming bodies, Cho and Harry caught sight of a highly amusing sight. Professor Flitwick, the Charms Master and Head of Ravenclaw, had suddenly been hoisted into the air by the students and was hardly pleased about it. In fact, he seemed terrified to be crowd surfing. Even though they were in a desperate rush to get out in one piece, they managed to find a moment to smile and laugh lightly at seeing the little old man being passed around above the heads of the students.

Once they were completely off of the dance floor, both Cho and Harry took a moment to catch their breath and then looked around for the drinks and for a place to relax at. Both were able to pick up the sight of his friend Ron and her friend Padma Patil. They had apparently been partnered together for the evening, but neither looked to be enjoying one another's company at the moment. Not when they had two empty chairs between them, Padma was sitting with both her arms and her legs crossed with great dissatisfaction painted upon her face, and Ron slouched while looking out into the crowd wearing a scowl. Still, Cho and Harry could not find any other place that appeared to be open and decided to be with their friends for the moment, even if it appeared their friends were far from having a good time.

"If you would like, I'll go grab us some drinks and you can sit down," Harry said to Cho. Clearly he was making an attempt at being a gentleman for her. She wanted to laugh at how sweet he was being, though she decided to hold it in so as not to come off as unappreciative. Instead, she smiled and nodded her head before he led her to the table with their friends. First making sure that she was seated comfortably next to the Ravenclaw Patil, he then took off to find the drinks, nodding to Ron as he went. Ron appeared to have not noticed as his face hardly twitched.

"Hey, Cho," Padma managed to utter, nearly taking Cho by surprise. Cho was more curious about the tone her friend gave off, which sounded as though she was bored out of her skull.

"Hey, Padma," she responded back, raising a confused brow in the process. "I take it you are not having a good time tonight."

"Oh, I've only been wanting go to this so badly for the past week," Padma stated sarcastically. Then she let out a heavy sigh after she rolled her eyes in frustration. "And I thought I was getting the better end of the deal when my sister suggested I partner with Ron while she went with one of the twins, George I think." She then focused her attention on Ron and spoke coldly. "Congratulations on turning some thing I never wanted desperately to go to into the most dreadful experience of my life!" When it appeared that Ron was either ignoring her or did not allow for the message to register, Padma let out another sigh and sulked in her chair. "The next time I see my sister, I swear to Merlin, I am going to choke her to death."

"Not before I kill George Weasley and his twin brother," a similar sounding voice proclaimed. The girls looked up to see Padma's twin sister Parvati marching up to them and sitting herself down in the chair between Cho and Ron. Much like her sister, the Gryffindor Patil looked any thing but pleased with the way the evening was going for her. In fact, she looked like she was about ready to explode with anger, if she had not done so already. "I was so close to socking him in the face before I finally decided to just walk away."

Having known Padma over the last few years, Cho knew that it took a lot to get under her skin. She was sure that the Patil sisters shared the ability of having a great deal of patience and for not letting things get to them in a personal way. It was no surprise that any one of the Weasley twins would be successful in getting to either one of the Patil girls. But Cho was rather surprised to see that it appeared Ron may have picked up on the troublemaking traits of his immediate elder brothers. Or perhaps he was indirectly being as frustrating as them.

It was then that Harry returned, an open bottle of butterbeer in each hand. He handed one to Cho, who thanked him in return, while he tried to figure out how to best position himself now that the once empty seat that was next to her had been taken by the Gryffindor Patil. After a moment to assess the seating arrangements, he finally decided on merely stepping aside and standing beside Padma.

"I can't imagine your night has been any worse than mine," Padma stated to her sister. "Ron has been completely ignoring me ever since the whole thing started. As soon as Hermione Granger walked in, he just would not take his eyes off of her while also trying to shoot daggers at Viktor Krum. He has barely said a word to me, and it was only to refuse to dance just so he could continue to stare at those two."

"I'd rather take ignorance after what George and his brother tried to make me do all evening," Parvati responded with a sigh. "Those two were constantly trying to make me and Angelina eat these sweets they had instead of ordering from the menu. Because the sweets were from them, I was very suspicious about accepting them. Unfortunately, there were a lot of innocent bystanders who ended up being not so lucky. Susan Bones from Hufflepuff fainted after eating one, a girl from Beauxbatons had a nosebleed, a boy from Durmstrang vomited. Even Vincent Crabbe from Slytherin complained about his temperature going up and feeling some thing uncomfortable forming in his insides."

"Sounds like there was one good thing about them giving out those sweets," Harry commented aloud before taking a sip of his drink. Cho almost choked trying to both not laugh and spit out her drink. The amused smile that she was wearing was visible from behind the free hand she tried to cover it with as she looked over at Harry, as if trying to complain about what he nearly made her do as a result of what he said.

"I admit, that part was pretty funny," Parvati noted with a shrug. However, she was hardly sharing in the enthusiasm that Cho and Harry were displaying. "He ran off screaming when it appeared that the effects were really starting to kick in. Look, those two Weasleys were trying to push this stuff in my mouth and Angelina's the entire time. We're supposed to be their partners, not their test subjects. How Angelina puts up with Fred, I really don't know. They're having a blast dancing their silly little dance while George is doing these strange movements in an attempt to look up and down my robes. The dirty minds these boys have, I cannot believe I allowed myself to go with him."

Cho could no longer contain herself and managed to let out a light laugh. That was not to say that she did not look down on the generally despicable behavior of young male adolescents. Her first week as part of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team was enough to prove just how much she disliked it. But when the descriptions of such actions were applied to the Weasley twins, she had the strange feeling that it was not about them being driven by raging hormones and more about them looking to get a good laugh out of the evening. It was rather infectious and cute to think about, really. She looked over to Harry to see an amused smile on his face, no doubt thinking the same thing she was. The Patil twins, on the other hand, were hardly fond of the Weasleys and their attempt at humor.

"May I have your arm?" a voice spoke suddenly. With the exception of Ron, the others looked over to see a strange, yet rather handsome looking male standing before the girls with a hand stretched out for one to take. Given the color and design of his dress robe, it would appear as though he was a student from Beauxbatons. Cho was about to wonder if there was a particular girl he was speaking to, but it was not even a second before his question was answered.

"Arm, leg, I'm yours!" Parvati declared, seemingly looking for any excuse to try to salvage her evening from being a total disaster. The Gryffindor Patil immediately placed her hand upon his, both smiling as though they were happy to be together, and then she was whisked away onto the dance floor while her Ravenclaw twin looked dumbstruck and horrified at being left behind before returning to a sulky state. Cho and Harry looked at one another and smiled with amusement before each took another sip of their drinks.

The evening then took an interesting turn with the arrival of Hermione Granger. She sat down in the seat that had been previously occupied by Parvati, a big smile on her face and her cheeks colored with a light shade of pink from dancing. Unable to help herself, Cho took careful note of the way Harry interacted with his friend, seeing him casually wave while still having the bottle of butterbeer in his mouth. Moments later, however, every thing was turned upside down without any warning when Ron, who had barely done any thing except scowl all night, launched into a sudden verbal assault against Hermione. The others were taken by complete surprise as they watch him accuse her of trying to help Viktor Krum beat Harry in the Triwizard Tournament.

"He's from Durmstrang!" Ron spat with venom. "He's competing against Harry! Against Hogwarts! You…" He paused, darting his eyes this way and that, turning his head in different directions. Presumably looking for the right words to say next. He then found them and they were far from pleasant. "You're _fraternizing with the enemy_, that's what you're doing!" For a moment, Hermione was too dumbstruck by what he had just said to immediately respond. Her mouth hung just slightly open in shock. Anger than flashed over her face and she answered his accusation, standing so that she could tower over him.

"Don't be so stupid!" she cried in frustration. "The _enemy_? Honestly… Who was the one who was all excited when they saw him arrive? Who was the one who wanted his autograph? Who's got a model of him up in his dormitory?"

Cho was taken aback by the scene she was witnessing. It was unlike any thing she had ever seen before. Friends would argue, and some times such bickering would get heated. But this was much worse. This was a dispute that exploded into a vicious battle, apparently over pride. And it was getting louder and louder. Such a scene that was being made that it was starting the attract the attention of folks who just happened to be nearby, curious to see what all of the commotion was about. Cho looked over to see Padma looking quite stunned that this was happening and seemed to be trying to scoot as far away from it as possible without moving her seat. She then looked up to Harry and could see that he was horrified. His two best friends were verbally fighting one another over some thing he probably did not understand. Further more, he appeared quite helpless in trying to stop it.

"This whole tournament's supposed to be about getting to know foreign wizards and making friends with them!" Hermione cried hotly. She tried to sound reasonable, but her inability to maintain her own composure diminished the effect she wanted her words to have.

"No it isn't!" Ron shouted back, his eyes burning with great intensity. "_It's about winning!_"

Hermione looked as though she had just been slapped across the face. And if there was any doubt that the argument was drawing a crowd, the last statement easily put them to rest. Those who were not dancing were instead fixed upon watching Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger go at it like a married couple just about ready to descend into divorce. The two of them paying no heed to the fact that they were attracting some potentially unwanted attention. They were focused upon one another, but hardly in a positive manner. Cho could see that it was also having one hell of a negative effect on Harry. Seemingly losing all hope in getting his friends to stop and bury the hatchet. He wanted to make some sort of attempt to end this, but it clearly was a weak effort.

"Ron," he managed to utter. He spoke in such a mousey voice that it was barely audible. "I haven't got a problem with Hermione coming with Krum…" He was immediately cut off. It surprised Cho that his own friends would actually do that to him, and yet they did. It almost scared her, really.

"Why don't you go and find Vicky?" Ron questioned, crossing his arms over his chest and slumping even further into his chair. "He'll be wondering where you are."

"_Don't call him Vicky!_" Hermione screamed at the top of her lungs. It very nearly sounded more like a shriek as some folks who were watching flinched their hands toward their ears in an unconscious attempt to cover them. A second later, she turned and stormed off toward the dance floor, no doubt believing that it was futile to continue arguing with Ron any further. Once she had disappeared into the crowd of dancing couples, folks who had watched the display of tension slowly began to disperse after spending a moment to stare in disbelief at the younger male Weasley.

Cho looked to Harry, seeing him appear rather pale over what just happened. She could only begin to imagine how sad he must be feeling at the moment. His two best friends going at it as though they had instead been natural born enemies. Glancing over at Ron, she could see that he was staring off in the direction that Hermione left in. Not even bothering to look away and seemingly daring himself not to blink. She had almost forgotten about Padma until the Ravenclaw Patil stood up with a huffy sigh and turned to Ron with a horrible glare.

"So," Padma began to say sternly. She had placed both of her hands on her hips and was tapping her right foot. "Are you going to ask me to dance at all?" Cho was a little perplexed at hearing her friend ask that question at first. But then a second later, she realized that Padma was not really asking that question at all. More like requesting permission to be released from having to be attached to Ron as his partner for the evening.

"No," Ron answered grimly and without hesitation. Rather, he was actually saying yes to the real question and was setting her free.

"Fine," Padma responded. She threw her nose up into the air, turned, and walked off. She wanted to get as far away from Ron as possible that she barely managed to give out a quick wave to Cho before leaving. There was a moment of silence where it was just Cho, Harry, and Ron seemingly doing absolutely nothing until some one finally spoke up.

"Go on, Harry," Ron uttered, letting out a rather heavy sigh as he spoke. He loosened his arms so that they would slide off his chest and hang down from either side of him toward the floor. His face turning from a scowl into some thing that appeared to be one of possible regret. "Don't mind me." Harry hesitated to respond at first, truly unsure as to what he should say or do.

"Ron…" he began to say before, once again, being immediately cut off.

"You spent days mulling over how to ask Cho to the ball tonight after months of being smitten with her at first sight," Ron stated. His voice sounding a lot more sincere than it had been just moments before. Though he still was not tearing his eyes away from the direction he was looking in. "Now you're finally with her. Have a good time, mate. Besides, I've already argued with you for the year."

Cho could see that Harry was still very uncertain about what exactly to do. He looked down to her and she tried to put forth a reassuring smile that only stayed for a quick second. If he were to ask, even she would not be able to tell him what he should do. It was his choice to make, to either stay and sulk with Ron or to leave and try to enjoy himself with her. It took a deep, thoughtful moment before he finally made his very uneasy decision. He slowly reached his hand out to her and she took it, allowing him to gently pull her to her feet. She slid her arm into his, giving him a soft squeeze as a way of telling him that it would be okay, before they departed.

"Later, Ron," Harry managed to utter quietly as he went. Clearly saddened by what had happened.

"Bye, Ron," Cho said, trying to sound kind and comforting. Along with Harry, she made a few concerned glances over her shoulder, seeing Ron not flinching even once, until they had gone far enough away to lose sight of him.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> By now, I am sure you readers have noticed that I have been making a plethora of tweaks here and there when comparing this version of the story to the original. This included the Triwizard Champions opening the Yule Ball with a dance before the feasting began, which is sort of a loose combination of what was done in both the book and the movie. There are also noticeable differences such as Cho and Harry having a little conversation while dining and the shortening of the Ron and Hermione argument. The latter scene was obviously diminished in an attempt to make it less about the argument itself and more about the reactions caused from it, so there was no need to write the whole thing. I did not have Cho and Harry talking during dinner in the original version and thought it would be a better idea to do so here since they already got through their first dance at the end of the last chapter.

_Nauro - Harry's reaction to Cho, when he finally meets her. Was alright and left a good impression, but was borderline over the top. I mean, angel? Seriously?_

I like to think that, because Harry has so little experience when it comes to being attracted to some one, that he would hardly be in the right frame of mind. Is thinking that Cho looked like an angel over the top? Absolutely. But Harry does not know that. Just as he does not know what to properly say when the subject of his friendship with Hermione is brought up. But then, that is the way I see it. I also think that I am trying to pull back any of the more over the top dialogue and actions that I thought I littered the beginning of the original version with. Tell me what you think.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	5. Ch 4: Talking

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

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><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

**Talking**

Harry wanted to get outside as quickly as possible. The culmination of his nervousness over the entire evening, along with having just witnessed his two best friends viciously turn against one another so suddenly, made him feel as though he was burning up inside. The cold winter temperatures would be more than enough to cool him down. It helped that Cho seemed to have no problem going along with him, surely as an unfortunate result of being present first-hand for the argument between Ron and Hermione. They swiftly made their way past the crowd gathering near the right wall, dancing wildly to the music being played by the Weird Sisters, and out of the Great Hall with relative ease. Though the Entrance Hall was not empty, there were not that many couples lingering about, allowing for them to slip further unnoticed toward the large double wooden doors that served as the proper entrance into the castle that was Hogwarts.

He had placed a firm hand upon the door only to stop short of pushing it forward. The event of what had just happened only a moment ago still very fresh in his mind, just as it was no doubt fresh in her mind. Surely that was some thing he did not want to see happen tonight of all nights. He never wanted to see it happen at all, but it really bothered him that she ended up having to see it as well. Feeling as though he had just subjected her to a very unpleasant sight, some thing he certainly never wanted to do to her. The sense of guilt for indirectly harming her in some fashion. He could not bare to sleep tonight with that weighing on his conscious.

"I'm really sorry," he stated in a somber tone. "About what happened back there."

"I understand," she responded quietly. She tried to put forth a reassuring smile. "I don't think any one could have seen that coming, really. Least of all you." She appeared to be bitting her bottom lip lightly while she paused for a brief moment. "If I'm being a burden because I'm your partner tonight…"

"Wha?" he quickly uttered, almost shocked to have heard what she had said. "No. No, of course you're not a burden. You could never be a burden, honestly." He paused upon realizing what he had just said. He noticed that her smile brightened just a bit. Perhaps this meant that she was appreciative of his words. Maybe she was even starting to wash away some of the discomfort she had been feeling from what happened before. He began to relax a little, believing that this was the case. "So… Shall we?" She nodded approvingly.

Passing through the entrance doors, they found the sight of the courtyard to be a majestic scene. Harry could not remember the last time the Viaduct Courtyard looked any thing like it did before him. Snow, falling slowly and gently against the dark blue night, covering the landscape, which already had a good inch or two blanketing every thing in an open space. The bushes, the large stone statues, even the winding, ornamental paths. Fluttering fairy lights began to twinkle about them while water continued to flow from the central fountain, no doubt under a spell to keep it from freezing. The rose garden managed to appear even more wondrous than it had ever been. It was making him think back to the Christmas songs he managed to catch a listen to back in the Muggle world, describing a Winter Wonderland. The way he saw it, this was the very definition of that phrase.

Cho had let out an exhale of amazement, surely from being in awe at the scenery before her. He allowed her to slip her arm out of his and watched as she took a few steps in front of him, letting the snow fall onto her person. With a great big smile on her face, she stretched her arms out to either side and spun in place, laughing softly along the way. He could not help but smile himself, seeing her having fun the way she was. There was some thing beautiful, he thought, about watching her like this. Whatever worries she had prior to coming out here had disappeared in a flash. Not a care in the world around and just enjoying the moment at hand. The overlong sleeves from the complimentary piece to her dress flowing gracefully with her movement. She twirled again, only stopping short of completing a full rotation to instead face him. Her smile, still the most precious smile he had ever seen. So fixed upon that smile he was that he nearly was unable to register for a moment that she had walked up to him, gently grabbed his hands, and began pulling him out into the snow to join her. He offered no resistance. Once he was roughly several feet deep into the courtyard, she let go of his hands and once more began to spin.

"Isn't this wonderful?" she asked, continuing to laugh with joyous glee. She spun once more before stopping again to face him. Her smile still ever present, glowing with such radiance that it dazzled him.

"It is," he answered breathlessly. Truth be told, he was referring to both the beauty of the courtyard around him and the beauty of Cho before him.

Moments passed where it seemed as though he just did nothing but stand there, taking in all that his green eyes could see. He watched as she dropped her arms behind her back and playfully shifted her body, leaning one way while her head was slightly cocked in the other. She stepped toward him until they were barely a couple feet apart, letting out a light laugh, as if letting him know she was about to tease him. He did not mind one bit.

"So," she began to say as her smile curved in a sly manner. "What Ron said back there. About you having fancied me for months." He had almost forgotten that his friend had said that aloud with her present before leaving him be back in the Great Hall. His cheeks were starting to warm instantly. "Of all the girls in Hogwarts alone, you were attracted to me. You, The Boy Who Lived, smitten with simple little Cho Chang." If he had been blushing a light shade of pink before, he was very certain that they were now extremely scarlet. "What is it about me that you like, Harry?"

She just had to ask that question, he thought nervously. How in the world could he possibly answer that? What was the answer? His brain, which would generally shut down when she had talked to him earlier in the night, was now running on overdrive in trying to figure out the best way to reply to her. And yet he could not come up with any thing that would sound remotely reasonable enough to say. He could not even come up with an honest one because, quite frankly, he did not understand himself how it was that he had a crush on her. It was just instantaneous upon seeing her for the first time in the last Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw Quidditch match. The question of why it happened he could never explain, just as he could never explain why it was that she, of all the girls in Hogwarts including his friend Hermione, was the one he was attracted to. And of course, him being who he was, it was not long before he did some thing very foolish and spoke without thinking.

"I, uh…" he managed to utter. Fidgeting, he sunk his head slightly into himself, allowed his eyes to wander briefly, and scratched the top of his head. That smile of hers was getting wider. Oh, how he was falling so hard for that smile of hers. And if he wanted to see it remain, he had better come up with some answer to her question. "Well…" Great going, Harry, he thought to himself. Way to truly put to rest the nervousness that had been hounding him virtually through the entire evening by opening his mouth, barely let out a word, and then stop from speaking any further. Yet that smile of hers had not faltered. Rather, it seemed as though it was getting bigger. Perhaps one of the virtues of being in Ravenclaw was to have an extraordinary ability to be patient for however long it took to be so. It was hardly the kind of trait found in any student within Gryffindor, even Hermione would eventually get fed up. Instead, Cho stood there, looking as pretty as ever, and waited until he finally answered. "You were… I mean, you are… You are so different from any one I had ever seen or met before. And I'm fascinated by you."

That was the best he could come up with? He was attracted to her because she was different? Feeling extremely ashamed with himself, he felt the urge to just slap himself across the face right then and there. At first, he felt much worse when she started to laugh. But then he realized that it was one of her ever so lovely gentle laughs. The kind that made him feel at ease. To believe that he may not have made himself out into as big of a fool as he imagined. Nevertheless, his heart was not beating any slower than it had been when she had asked the question he finally managed to answer.

"You're fascinated, are you?" she asked in an obviously teasing tone. At least, he hoped that was a teasing tone she was giving off. With a sly smile forming on her lips, she stepped closer to him until she was mere inches away from him. "What is it about me that you find fascinating?"

Despite the cold winter temperatures, Harry was very certain that he could feel sweat forming at the top of his head. He was heating up so much that he suspected that he could melt the snow beneath his feet at any second. Never before, not even when facing a Hungarian Horntail or a Basilisk or even Dementors, had he ever felt himself in the state that he was in at this very moment. A complete and utterly emotional wreck. Whereas those previous encounters were battles of life and death, this was him trying to talk to a girl. It made absolutely no sense that his concern of whether or not the next thing that came out of his mouth may or may not put her off trumped all other experiences in scaring him beyond reason. Swallowing hard, he thought desperately to give her an answer that was honest and would not make her feel uncomfortable with him.

"I really don't know how to explain it," he admitted breathlessly. "I look at you… and there's some thing to you… that makes me… want to get to know you more… if that makes any sense…"

Harry made a solemn vow right then and there that he was going to do whatever it took to learn how to talk to girls. This was just revolting the way he was losing his mind worrying over what he was going to say, concerned with whether or not his words might send her running for the hills in disbelief. Furthermore, it just baffled him that he had absolutely no problem talking to Hermione and Ginny and any of the girls on the Gryffindor Quidditch team yet he was tripping over himself just trying to utter a proper word to Cho. Nevertheless, he was quite astonished that she was not throwing her hands in the air with annoyance or frustration, presenting a curious contradiction to his belief that the whole thing was a huge disaster.

She raised an intriguing brow and widened her grin as she lifted her head in an attempt to level her eyes with his. "So you want to get to know me more, eh?" she questioned. That teasing tone she had been using was still ever present and it was still not easing his tension. She then slipped her arms back into one of his, nudging him to lead her along one of the winding paths through the rosebushes. "Well, here's your chance. Ask away."

Now she was letting him ask her a question. A seemingly personal one. In an effort to get to know her better, as he claimed just moments before that he wanted to in asking her to the Yule Ball. Way to go, Harry Potter. He had just painted himself into a rather inescapable corner. Some thing else to completely mess with his nerves and his emotions, he was quite certain that it was only a matter of time before every thing finally crashed down upon him, leaving him to suffer from either a breakdown or a heart-attack. He could only guess which would be worse.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling quietly, he finally mustered some sort of courage to speak. "So… you're Seeker for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team," he stated. He wondered for a brief second if he suddenly had a squeaky voice because it sounded as though he had one just then. He cleared his throat and continued. "I was, uh, wondering if that meant you were thinking of making a career out of playing the sport."

Unfortunately, that was the best he could come up with to ask her. Though he did not necessary say it in the actual form of a question, but that was beside the point. He was uncomfortable with asking her a question that he would perceive as being too personal, unintentionally crossing a line he understood should never be crossed when talking to girls. At least, that was the impression he got from the way Ron and Hermione had been arguing the last few weeks. He then remembered that he and Cho seemingly shared an interest in Quidditch and decided to go with that.

"Surprise, surprise," she mockingly teased him with a light laugh. "You want to talk about Quidditch, I see." Some thing told him that perhaps talking about sports was not necessarily the best subject to use when conversing with a girl, but then she did not look at all bothered by it. "Well, to answer your question, no. I don't plan on making a career out of playing Quidditch. Truth be told, I'm only on the team because our house was desperate for a Seeker and I was apparently the one to fill the void."

"Why is that?" he asked curiously.

"It has to do with the fact that my godfather is a very famous Quidditch player," she replied, a smile forming on her face.

"Really?" he gasped in awe. Granted he hardly knew any famous Quidditch player outside of Viktor Krum, he was nonetheless intrigued.

"Yep," she confirmed with a nod. "Liam MacPherson, former Seeker and Captain of the Tutshill Tornadoes. In the 1979 season, he led them to the league championship and was named MVP. He was named Captain of the English team in the 1982 World Cup. I heard they were so close to the final, but the Japanese Seeker managed to just snatch the Golden Snitch right form under Uncle Liam's nose."

"Uncle Liam?" he questioned with a confused brow raised. "I thought you said he was your godfather."

"He is," she began to explain. "Godfather Liam sounded silly and I did not want to call him Mr. MacPherson, but my mother insisted that I shouldn't call him just Liam. We settled on Uncle Liam since we considered him very much apart of our family. And before you ask, yes, he gave me a few lessons in playing the game. Begged him to after seeing my first game when I was six. He and the Tornadoes beat the Pride of Portree by twenty points, an amazing thriller. He did a double spin around his opponent and zoomed left, even though the Golden Snitch was going right. But experience taught him when to anticipate the misdirections of the Golden Snitch…"

Watching her glow with admiration and listening to her talk of the excitement she felt seeing her first Quidditch game, Harry started to feel the warmth he always felt whenever he was around the Weasleys. Being with them always filled his heart, knowing that he was surrounded by good, kind-hearted people. Providing the type of honest love and affection he wished he could go home to. It made him feel glad to know that Cho was seemingly experiencing that warmth in her life. He really could not explain it even to himself, but he could honestly believe that he was happy seeing her as happy as she was at this moment. So much so that he wished it could last forever.

"Ten points from Ravenclaw, Fawcett!" a voice violently barked suddenly. It caused Harry and Cho to stop dead in their tracks with surprise, nearly throwing them off guard for a moment. "And the same for Hufflepuff, Stebbins!" Harry immediately began to tighten the lock he had on her arm. The tone of voice was all too familiar to him. And he was afraid that he just may have accidentally brought her into the line of fire.

He turned ever slightly in the direction of the voice, just catching sight of a barely dressed female speeding off toward the castle with a loosely dressed male trying to catch up with her. Getting as far away as they could from two dark figures that stood stiff and firm. There was no denying to him the identity of one of them. Severus Snape. The Potions Master who had it in against him from the second they first met, if only because of who his father was. The other figure Harry could not figure out at first given that he did not have a clear view of their physical person. But with his luck, he was sure to find out in a moment. It appeared that Snape was thoroughly searching the grounds, looking to bust any couples who were letting their hormones getting the better of them. He looked to be destroying some more rose bushes in search of naughty teenagers when his head just managed to turn long enough to catch sight of Harry. Just what this evening needed.

"You!" Snape roared. He marched with a purpose toward Harry, gripping his wand so tight that it was turning his already pale hand whiter than ever. Once he was within a fair amount of distance, he stopped still and raised his wand. Pointing it directly into the face of Harry. Seemingly prepared to cast some sort of spell or curse at any second without hesitation. "And what are you doing with her, Potter?"

How dare he, Harry thought. It was bad enough that Snape would make any sort of excuse to get on his case. Even more infuriating when he unjustly went after his friends as well. Sure Snape seemed to have a general disdain for any one that was not from Slytherin, but there was no mistaking that he would constantly target Harry and any one who had the misfortune of being associated with him. All because he never got along with his father and he just happened to look very much like him, save for his green eyes and lighting-shaped scar on his forehead. And now he stood before him, wand in hand, as if daring Harry to say any thing that would allow him to believe that he was or would be engaging in funny business with Cho. Under normal circumstances, he would call the bluff of the Potions Master and confront him on his continued mistreatment of him. However, he knew that this would have the unfortunate result of potential harm being caused against Cho. Granted the most that would probably happen would be that she would unfairly lose ten points for Ravenclaw, but he did not want to risk the idea of emotional damage she may receive as a result of being caught in the middle of their feud.

"We're walking," Harry replied. Trying to sound firm and undaunted. "Not against the law, is it?" He watched as Snape narrowed his eyes. No doubt shooting him with one of the more frightful death glares he had ever given. Nevertheless, he stood his ground and waited patiently for what would happen next.

"Keep walking then," the Potions Master muttered with a low growl after a moment of silence had passed. He forcefully dropped his wand before brushing past them in a huff, his long black cloak billowing out behind him as he went. The other figure hurried along after him. Harry was pretty sure he recognized the identity of the man following Snape, but it hardly seemed important to him at the moment. Not with his mind still swimming with the possibility of what could have happened instead.

When he was sure the footsteps of the two adults were no longer in hearing range, he relaxed slightly. Letting out a brief sigh, he turned to Cho. She appeared quite shocked at what she had just witnessed. While it did not seem to him that she may be frightened, he started to realize that she had a hand on his bicep and was gripping rather hard. It took a moment for her to register that he was looking at her, after which she too eased a bit. He was very certain that she had never seen Snape in such a manner before. It was extremely bothersome that it had to happen tonight of all nights. It made Harry wonder gloomily what else could happen to try and dampen the evening. Just when things seemed to be getting better or improving, some thing came along to turn the mood upside down.

"I'm really sorry about that," he said quietly to her. He felt like being ashamed for getting her involved in the first place.

"The stories told about you two can hardly cover the animosity I just saw," she managed to say. Clearly she seemed disturbed slightly by what just happened, unable to lift her face into that precious smile he loved to see. Instead, she just stared out into the distance with a sense of uncertainty before nudging Harry to move. As though Snape was watching them from hiding and they needed to prove that they were doing little more than simply walking. "Was there ever a point you two were civil with one another?"

"There was never a chance," he answered with a heavy sigh. "And I doubt there ever will be. He despised me from day one and had never really let up ever since. Talking with some folks here and there, I learned that he and my father did not get along when they unfortunately went to Hogwarts together. Seeing me being physically alike to my father save for my eyes and scar, I guess I was forced to carry on his burden of dealing with the Potions Master."

"What was it that made them dislike one another?" she asked curiously.

"Not sure, actually," he replied with a shrug. "It seemed to me that it was just natural hate they had for one another. Apparently, it never got any better when my father did some thing that Snape really despised him for."

"Which was?" she questioned with great interest.

"He saved his life," he answered. Following a slight pause, she let out a light laugh in disbelief. He also managed to crack half a grin. "A friend of my father wanted to pull a prank on Snape. It did not go so well, and my father stepped in to save him from what was apparently certain death." He withheld the majority of the information he learned about the incident for the obvious reason of keeping the good name of Remus Lupin from being tarnished any more than it was when his being werewolf became public at the end of the previous term. He was also not sure how she would take to discovering that the friend of his father was Sirius Black, wanted felon who had successfully escaped from Azkaban and, more importantly, was his godfather.

"So, Professor Snape's way of repaying your father is to hound you throughout your Hogwarts attendance?" Cho questioned, clearly trying to comprehend what she had just heard.

"Well, when you put it that way, it doesn't sound so bad," Harry jokingly stated. This brought out another light laugh from her. Leaving him hopeful that the mood had shifted back to a more pleasant one.

Whether or not more would have been said on the subject was lost almost in an instant. They came to a dead stop when they spotted some thing. A sight that took them aback with a bit of shock and a bit of awe. Just slightly up the path they could see two people standing half-concealed in a rosebush. Two figures they recognized to be Roger Davies and Fleur Delacour.

They looked very busy.

Harry and Cho both did all that they could to keep from making any sort of noise. Harry scratched the back of his head sheepishly and only slightly turned away while Cho covered her mouth with a free hand to keep from laughing. Clearly she found amusement in seeing her Quidditch Captain engaged in the position that he was in. Particularly with the face he was making the entire time. Harry and Cho looked at one another for a brief moment, during which he could sense that she wanted to take this opportunity to embarrass Roger and decided to let her. They glanced behind to see if there was any one else about and then turned back to the couple behind the rosebush.

"Quaffle northwest, Captain!" Cho called out.

Roger and Fleur nearly screamed in horror as both began to hurriedly try to dress themselves back up before falling over one another and out of the rosebush. Cho was now laughing hysterically. Even Harry could not help but chuckle at the absurdity of the scene on display. When Roger and Fleur finally managed to look up to see who called out, both of their faces were immediately flushed with deep shades of pink.

"Sorry," Cho managed to exhale through laughter. She was on the verge of clutching her stomach. "I just had to do it, Captain."

"'ave you no manners?" Fleur cried as she quickly stood up in a huff and desperately pulling her right strap back in place over her shoulder. The red on her face was now mixing anger and embarrassment. "No respect for privacy?"

"Just be glad it was us and not Professor Snape," Harry said after coughing out a chuckle. "He's on a tear punishing any couple he finds doing things they're not supposed to do out here."

"Are you kidding me?" Roger moaned as he scrambled to his feet and buttoning the top of his inside shirt. "Professor Snape is on patrol tonight?"

"Afraid so," Cho replied, her laughing fading enough for her to speak more clearly. "We saw him catching Fawcett with Stebbins from Hufflepuff and docking them each ten points."

"Great, just great," Roger muttered as he desperately stuffed his shirt into his pants before grabbing Fleur's arm. "My apologies, Miss Delacour. But I believe it would be in our best interest to get back inside."

"Now?" Fleur practically shrieked. "Roger, I am not fully dressed!"

"Believe me when I say that it's better to be caught by other students not fully dressed than to be caught by Professor Snape in such a state," Roger noted as he led her quickly back toward the castle. "You may not go to Hogwarts, but you don't want to be on his bad side regardless."

Fleur tried to continue objecting as Harry and Cho watched her and Roger move swiftly away from them. Once the loosely dressed couple was out of view, Harry and Cho began to laugh again. Cho nearly fell to her knees while Harry merely shook his head. They kept on laughing for a good moment before resigning themselves to grinning gleefully.

"Did you see the look on his face while they were in the rosebush?" Cho asked through a grin that was widening. "He was absolutely petrified!"

"I'm surprised he wasn't drooling," Harry noted with a chuckle. "Then again, it's probably a good thing he didn't. Can you imagine how horrified she would be if he dribbled a single drop on her?" His saying this caused the both of them to howl. It took them another moment to calm down and return to just merely grinning.

Granted it was at the expense of others, Harry found that he was indeed having a splendid time with Cho. Some thing he was deathly afraid was not going to happen in the days leading up to this night. But now the cold winter temperatures were starting to freeze up his body, meaning now would probably be a good time to return to the Yule Ball. Taking a deep breath, he spoke once more.

"If I may escort you back to the Great Hall, Miss Chang," he said, mocking the attempted gentleman behavior Roger tried to display earlier in his quick retreat. He was only able to keep from grinning for barely a second for added effect before it returned on his face.

Cho played along and mocked being lady-like. "My hand is yours, Mr. Potter," she said, not bothering to mask the light laugh that escaped her lips. She stretched her hand out just enough for him to gently take hold. Her chocolate brown eyes meeting with his green almond-shaped eyes. Then they smiled together before he led her back into the castle to rejoin the Yule Ball.

* * *

><p>As the festivities of the Yule Ball began to wind down, Cho had convinced Harry to resume dancing. It helped that the vast majority of the students that had once filled the Great Hall were now gone and the music the Weird Sisters played were much slower in pace, allowing for them to merely sway to the rhythm as opposed to exerting every part of their body in all directions as Harry feared. In fact, they were perhaps one of only maybe three or four couples left dancing in the hour before midnight. Among the other couples Harry pointed out was Neville Longbottom and Ginny Weasley, catching how every now and then she would wince whenever he accidentally stepped on her toes. Otherwise, Cho and Harry were lost in their own dance, hardly paying any attention to their surroundings.<p>

She could feel that he was perhaps in the most relaxed state he had ever been all night with regards to dancing. There was hardly any tension in him and he was moving almost entirely in perfect rhythm with her, flowing more fluidly than ever before. He would still make a misstep or two, but they were becoming fewer and far between and he never allowed them to disrupt his focus or concentration. In fact, he never once removed his eyes from hers for any reason. It appeared that nothing was going to interfere with the enjoyment he was having. Which in turn was making her feel quite happy herself.

"I have to admit some thing," she said rather breathlessly. "Quite honestly, I was not even sure I wanted to go to the Yule Ball before you asked me." She watched as he was taken aback with this revelation. Some how, he managed to maintain his composure and keep dancing. "I don't think I was all that interested, really. Was never one to think about boys. That was more along Marietta's department. While I do have my admirers, none of them really stood out as being worth spending the whole evening with. Guess you could say I was fearful of winding up like Padma and her sister."

"You mean you don't want to be surrounded by a bunch of males from Beauxbatons smitten with your exotic beauty?" Harry asked with a curious brow. She looked at him with bewilderment until he nodded his head over to one of the tables outside of the dance floor. There she spied not only Padma, but her twin sister Parvati soak up the attention they were receiving from within a sea of male suiters. The sight causing her to laugh with shock and amusement.

"Okay, I can say with certainty that I wasn't expecting that," she stated once she was able to speak clearly. "But I think you get what I am trying to say. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I'm the only girl on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team and therefore kind of got a fairly good idea of what most boys are like. Roger, in particular, showing me what a guy is like when trying to woo a girl. I did not want to go through such a hassle the whole night and thought it would be better to bury myself in my studies instead."

"But then I asked you and you said yes," he noted.

"Obviously because you are a different case," she responded. "You're Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived. And you're asking me to the Yule Ball. How often does that happen? But more importantly, you're asking me. Me of all the girls you could have asked. You remember, I was quite stunned. I said yes because I absolutely fascinated to know why you picked me. But I also wanted to see what kind of a person you really were. If you were as they say you were, seeking attention at every turn, or if there was another side to you that very many people do not know about."

"What were you able to discover about me?" he asked curiously.

She gave him a rather quizzical look and smiled. "The jury is still out on that one, I'm afraid," she answered. "But if it's any consolation, this has been a very nice evening and I'm glad I got to go with you. It was a very different experience, but one that was far more interesting than I could have expected. And I got to have fun at Roger's expense, so there's a plus." The two laughed softly in remembrance of what they saw moments before. "Thank you for asking me to go to the Yule Ball with you."

"Thank you for saying yes," he said sheepishly.

They continued to dance until midnight. By then, the Weird Sisters played their last mournful tune and were about to depart. Many of the students who remained were sad and wanted the evening to last forever. However, Hogwarts caretaker Argus Filch would have none of it and demanded that every one headed off to bed. Cho let Harry lead her out of the Great Hall and into the Entrance Hall. They were about to make their way up the spiral marble steps toward Ravenclaw tower when a familiar voice called out to Harry. They turned to see Cedric Diggory approach them with Marietta in tow. Cho could see that her friend looked rather exultant.

"Sorry, Cho," Cedric said to her as stood just a couple steps below them. "Do you mind if I can have a word with Harry real quick?"

"Uh, okay," Cho answered, looking as perplexed as Harry. Cedric gave off a smile of appreciation before he led Harry up the stairs ahead of her, seemingly for a private conversation. A second later, she felt her arm being hooked rather strongly and soon found herself trailing behind the boys with an excited Marietta.

"Best night ever!" Marietta whispered, unable to control herself. "Cedric is so amazing! I doubt there is any one else who could be any more of a gentleman than he was." Cho could feel the grip her friend had on her arm tighten with each passing second. It was getting to the point that the nails might end up piercing the skin. "Such a handsome dancer, I felt like I was floating the whole time. He even said that I looked wonderful tonight, not minding that I may have overdone the hair a bit. In fact, I think he may have actually liked how I did my hair. He was also seeing that my dress did not get stained or ruined, making sure it wasn't in danger of any spills, accidental or otherwise."

"I take it you had a decent time then," Cho managed to jokingly say when Marietta paused from speaking. Her friend was the type to get on a roll when some thing exciting happened to her. Having what was clearly a fantastic night at the Yule Ball appeared to be just the right subject for such a seemingly endless monologue. Not wanting to have to stay up all night to hear every little detail when she was sure Marietta would just repeat it to the other girls in the morning, she decided to cut her off. She did not mind the slap to the arm that came as a result of doing so.

"It was such a good night that I am willing to overlook your attempt at dampening the mood regardless of your intentions," Marietta said in a rather haughty voice, which was followed by a clear humph. Seconds later, she formed a sly grin on her lips. "So, how about you? What kind of night did you have with The Harry Potter?"

"Interesting to say the least," Cho replied after a moment to think about her answer. "And before you ask, no, he didn't come off as any thing like Rita Skeeter wrote him to be in the Daily Prophet."

"He could just be putting on a face because you're with him," Marietta noted.

"Actually, I don't really think so," Cho responded. "He was scared to death of dancing in public." This statement immediately perked the interest of her friend.

"Harry Potter scared?" Marietta uttered with great interest and intrigue. "The Boy Who Lived, Seeker of the Gryffindor team by first year at Hogwarts, defeater of the Basilisk, and Triwizard Champion scared of dancing?" Cho was slowly beginning to regret having mentioned such a fact to her friend, not really liking the reaction that was being displayed before her. Making it seem as though it was some thing very scandalous for Harry to be afraid of dancing in public for the first time with a girl he had been smitten with for roughly a year.

"He eventually got the hang of it as the night progressed," Cho quickly added, hoping that it would ease the excitement a bit. "Particularly when the rhythms were slow."

"Slow rhythms, eh?" Marietta said with a brow raised. "Perhaps that's his way of saying that he would like to go slow and steady with you." Cho sighed with embarrassment while Marietta quietly giggled with glee. She was starting to discover that to say any thing about what happened tonight would only keep her friend going with these reactions. Not doubt getting back at Cho for cutting her off just moments before.

Before she knew it, she was at the top of the staircase, just outside the familiar entrance of a door without a knob or a keyhole, but with a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle. The boys up ahead turned to them, presumably finished with their sudden conversation. Marietta immediately released her tight grip on Cho's arm and, with an excited, dream-like smile, moved forward to apparently speak with Cedric, who himself was smiling. Cho kept a quick glance on them before turn to face Harry, baring a nervous smile. Probably as a result of being flooded with ideas of what a gentleman was supposed to do when coming to the end of an evening spent with a girl. The thought of such making her smile.

"Thank you again for asking me to the Yule Ball tonight, Harry," she said to him, breaking the brief silence that hung between them.

"Your welcome," he managed to utter breathlessly. "Wouldn't mind trying that again…" He trailed off as soon as he realized what he was saying and immediately blushed a light shade of pink upon his cheeks. The sight of which making her let out a gentle laugh.

"Harry Potter, are you asking me out on a date?" she asked in a teasing tone.

"Well, I, uh…" he muttered, fumbling every possible word that came out of his mouth. He scratched the back of his head and hunched his shoulders, obvious signs of his nervousness getting the best of him. Which only made her laugh gently just a little more. After speaking words that corresponded with each letter of the alphabet, he finally managed to take a deep breath and speak more clearly. "I mean, what I was trying to say is… perhaps if we do… go out together… that we could possibly, maybe have it a little less public… so to speak, you know…"

"I just might think about it," she said. Then she let out a tired exhale. "Good night, Harry."

"Good night, Cho," he said, almost as though he was about to forget to and had to speak really quickly about it.

She gave him a hearty smile, which he returned with one of his own. Then, without really thinking, she walked up and ran her hand down his arm. She did this before after he had asked her to the Yule Ball. She figured it was a nice gesture of appreciation. There was the thought of giving him a hug, but figured that doing so would certainly cause him to really tense up with nervousness. After all, it would have been like when he had to place a hand on her hip when they were first dancing. And that was probably more than enough close physical contact for him to deal with for one night, given every thing else that happened. Nevertheless, she could feel he had seemingly held his breath the second she made contact with him and then relaxed a little as her hand ran down to his wrist before moving away from his person.

Cho walked up to the door before turning back and looking over her shoulder at Harry. Her chocolate brown eyes meeting his green almond-shaped eyes. In a split moment, it seemed like there was nothing else around them. Not the presence of Cedric and Marietta or the echoing of students leaving the Entrance Hall below or any thing else that might otherwise be sensed. All Cho could feel was this sudden connection with Harry, and he was probably feeling it too. Looking at one another, perhaps in awe or admiration. She could not explain or understand what this feeling was. Nor could she figure out why now or why with him. All she knew was that this was some thing special. Some thing that was going to linger with her for a very long time. And the only other person who could share it with her was The Boy Who Lived.

It took a tug from Marietta to snap Cho out of her state. After stealing one more glance at Harry, she turned to the door and awaited for the eagle to present the riddle for her to answer. Only to find that Marietta had already answered it. Making Cho feel a little embarrassed for having been staring at Harry for so long. She wondered just how long that lasted. Before she knew it, she was in the Ravenclaw common room and on the couch closest to the fireplace. Marietta sat next to her and was letting out a very loving sigh indeed.

"I am going to have a wonderful dream tonight," she literally sang, stretching her arms out slowly and dramatically. Cho shook her head with disbelief at the way her friend was acting, but said nothing to ruin the moment.

Instead, she sat back and reflected a little more. It certainly was an interesting night, one that she certainly would not have expected to go the way it did. One thing that caught her by surprise was how she teased Harry quite a bit. Perhaps she had unconsciously picked up a some of the behavior traits of the boys on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Nevertheless, she had never really been known to mess with some one the way she did him this evening. He appeared to take them in stride, seemingly more focused in getting through the evening in one piece while also making a good impression on her. And he certainly wanted to make sure she had a good time. It was rather charming of him to do so, she had to admit.

All the more reason she now wished to get to know the real Harry Potter a little better. Surely he was still interested in getting to know more about her, presumably not content with just the fact that she had a famous Quidditch player for a godfather. Without even realizing it, she began to seriously take his offer to meet again into consideration.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> I am very sorry for the delay. A lot happened over the past five months that took up my time. Family events that I ended getting roped into working extensively on, virtually the entire bottom floor and kitchen of my place requiring six weeks worth of fixing up, Comic Con, a family vacation, and work. I was also very close in redoing the entire chapter during a re-read, but decided against it. I will keep trying to decrease the amount of time between chapters whenever possible. I really want to tell this story in full as its been a part of my life for literally years now.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	6. Ch 5: Piquing Interest

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

**Piquing Interest**

Boxing Day this year turned out to be quite different from any of the previous years. In the past, it was a generally quiet day used by the students to rest and recover from the excitement of Christmas. This time, however, virtually every student could be found gossiping with one another. All were talking about one thing and one thing only, the Yule Ball. Those who were not able to attend wanted to know every thing that happened. Those who were able to attend were analyzing their experiences. It seemed that nothing that occurred the previous night would be kept secret.

Cho did not emerge from bed until rather late in the morning. When she finally descended the stairs leading into the Ravenclaw common room, she took immediate notice of a crowd of girls surrounding her friend Marietta. No doubt relating to all of them her apparently romantic tale of going to the Ball with Cedric Diggory. All the while she was relishing her moment under the spotlight. Cho was quite happy to see Marietta finally get some of the attention her friend had been craving, if so that it would take the focus away from her.

Later during lunch, she witnessed roughly all of the boys in Ravenclaw venture to one end of their table to hear Roger spin some yarn about how he managed to charm Fleur Delacour. Displaying a great deal of confidence in an effort to give his story weight, though Cho was very sure he was merely putting on an act. While she considered marching over and revealing to the others what she really saw, she decided to save it for when a better opportunity to embarrass him presented itself. She figured it would sting him that much harder then as opposed to now.

It was during dinner when it finally happened. When the attention was fixed upon her. She should have realized some thing was up. Dinner was an unusually silent affair. There were a few quiet conversations here and there, most of which coming from the Beauxbatons students, to whom the Ravenclaw students were sharing their table with. Only they were gathered together at one end of the table, almost isolating themselves from every one else. Cho had nearly completed her dish when she looked up randomly and found virtually all of the students in her house gathered around her. Many of them were bunched up together as much as possible so that they could be in her line of sight. Furthermore, Marietta and Roger had seated themselves on either side of her, as if to keep her from trying to make some sort of escape. They were going to make her talk, whether she wanted to or not.

"So…" she managed to utter in a slightly nervous tone after swallowing what dinner remained in her mouth. "You guys clearly want to ask me some thing. What do you want to know?" Within seconds, she was hit with questions from all directions at the same time. It was extremely overwhelming, really.

"What was he like?" Lisa Turpin asked.

"Why did he go with you?" Michael Corner asked.

"Did you guys talk about any thing?" Mandy Brocklehurst asked.

"Do you fancy him?" Anthony Goldstein asked.

"Was he charming?" Orla Quirkle asked.

"Was he an arrogant prick?" Terry Boot asked.

"Did you two kiss?" Samantha Fawcett asked.

"Did you two get busy in the bushes?" Eddie Carmichael asked.

"Eddie!" Marietta gasped with a mixture of horror and frustration. "How dare you ask such a question like that? Must your behavior be dictated by your prepubescent mind?" She sounded quite offended, as though she was the one being scandalized and not Cho.

"Oy!" Roger called, letting out a slight whistle that immediately caused every one at the table, as well as a few others in the Great Hall, to fall silent and turn to him. He waited until the wandering eyes from the other tables looked away before speaking again, which Cho was thankful for as she did not want to receive any more attention than she already had. "I'm sure Cho would appreciate it if you lot asked your questions one person at a time."

"What was he like?" Lisa repeated quickly before any one else could speak. As a result, there were a few groans coming from those who now had to wait until they could get their questions answered.

"He was nervous," Cho replied. "But then just about every one who went last night was nervous, too." She heard Roger quietly cough, as though he was trying to imply that her statement did not apply to him. Oh, the desire to just embarrass him about what really happened to him during the Yule Ball started to get a little stronger.

"Nervous?" Joseph Bradley questioned in disbelief. "Harry Potter? We're talking about the same bloke, right? Seeker for Gryffindor, one of the Triwizard Champions. _The Boy Who Lived_." He was not the only one who was taken aback by this revelation. There appeared to be other students who were beginning to murmur amongst themselves about this.

"Yes, we're talking about the same Harry Potter," Cho said, shaking her head and trying to put forth a smile to show that she was amused by the stunned looks being displayed before her. "Even he gets nervous about a little thing like having to dance for the first time. Particularly when it is in front of more than half the students attending Hogwarts and more."

"So how badly did he trip over his feet?" David Chambers asked with a chuckle. The thought that Harry Potter, who as a baby defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, put a stop to a Basilisk in his second year at Hogwarts, and who a month ago had just gone up against a Hungarian Horntail could bumble about over some thing as seemingly trivial as dancing was amusing to the others.

"Actually, he started to ease up as the night progressed," Cho answered. "Might have to do with my helping him through the whole ordeal right from the start." A few of the girls began giggling upon hearing this. Even a few boys started to snicker and crack wicked grins on their faces. No doubt picturing the idea of her possibly hooking up with Harry Potter.

"You guys do any thing else besides dancing?" Latisha Randle questioned, looking as though she was yearning for more to hear.

"Well, we did manage to talk a little bit and walk around the courtyard briefly," Cho replied.

"What did you guys talk about?" Mandy asked, gasping with anticipation.

"We talked about Uncle Liam," Cho answered. Virtually every one in Ravenclaw knew who Uncle Liam was, thanks in large part to the rest of the house Quidditch team. And at once, there were two separate reactions. The girls groaned with displeasure while the boys chuckled with amusement.

"Couldn't you get him to talk about some thing other than Quidditch?" Marietta questioned. The tone of her voice made it seem as though talking about the sport was a bad thing.

"I think he was concerned about offending me by asking a potentially personal question," Cho explained in response. "So we talked about a subject that we both had in common." She could see that her friend was hardly impressed. The girls appeared to still be just as displeased as ever. The boys, on the other hand, merely nodded and smiled, as if talking about Quidditch was a respectable thing to do.

"You two talk about any thing else besides Quidditch?" Padma Patil asked.

"Well, we did get into a rather informative discussion about his beef with Professor Snape," Cho replied. This instantly perked the interest of every one else. "We had a little run in with him while he was patrolling for naughty couples." No one took notice of Fawcett darting her eyes away sheepishly for a moment. "Since we were merely walking, he simply told us to keep moving. Harry then told me that his father and Professor Snape went to Hogwarts together and despised one another, presumably out of natural hate. That clearly carried over onto Harry since he looked so much like his dad."

"Always thought he just disliked him for being The Boy Who Lived, really," Stewart Ackerley noted aside to the students he stood next to, speaking quietly so as not to interrupt Cho.

"Oh, it gets better," Cho stated. She suddenly wondered why she was freely admitting some thing like this to the others. Granted, it was not like she made any sort of promise to Harry not to reveal any of what she was saying about his history with Professor Snape. It just felt as though nothing good would really come out of it. Nevertheless, she continued to speak as she clearly had the attention of the others with her set-up. "Harry said that there was one thing his father did that Snape absolutely resented, perhaps even to this day." The others slowly leaned in close to her so that they could clearly hear what she was about to say. "He saved his life."

The others immediately began to buzz and murmur amongst one another with disbelief and fascination. It was quite a revealing and potentially scandalous piece of information she had just told them. They could not help but discuss and analyze with one another all about it. They were quite curious to know what could possibly get one on the good side of the Potions Master if his idea of repaying the father of Harry Potter for saving his life was to hound Harry throughout his stay at Hogwarts. Most of the students, mostly the younger ones, were of the opinion that it only strengthened their belief that Professor Snape had no heart. As such, some were daring to make quick glances over at the staff table, getting a good look at the subject of their discussion. Perhaps to create some sort of mental picture of what he could possibly have looked like in his younger years. Again, the younger students being of the opinion that he probably looked exactly the same.

Cho sat back and watched all of this happen with amusement. Within a short amount of time, she had managed to some how turn the interest of her fellow housemates from wondering about how Harry Potter conducted himself at the Yule Ball to questioning the character of Professor Snape. She did not know whether she should be proud or concerned. Regardless, she was actually quite glad to steer their interests away from Harry, feeling that doing so might prevent any embarrassing gossip about his character being fueled any further. Why she thought that way, she was not able to understand at this moment in time. She should probably be concerned about what would happen if what she had told the others about Professor Snape had made its way towards him. Yet for some reason, she did not seemed to be at all bothered by the potential consequences, if any were to occur. Seeing that every one before her was busy talking amongst themselves, she was about to resume eating her dinner. Only she forgot about the two people sitting on either side of her.

"So what's the verdict, Cho?" Roger asked with a wicked grin on his face.

"Are you and Harry Potter planning on seeing each other again?" Marietta asked, herself merely raising an interested brow.

Oh, they just had to ask those questions. Cho tried not to look nervous or embarrassed, but she was quite certain that she was not doing a very good job maintain an expressionless look. It did not help that she was constantly darting her eyes from Marietta to Roger or that her frown was becoming much more pronounced than she would have liked. She was just glad that she was not blushing or otherwise acting shyly. How badly those two would get on her case if any shade of pink appeared on her cheeks.

"I don't know," she finally answered with a sigh. "I mean, I honestly wouldn't mind running into him again. Under less stressful circumstances, of course."

"So you fancy him, then?" Roger questioned further, his grin getting wider.

"Not sure, really," Cho replied. Although there was a part of her that wondered if that was indeed the case. "I mean, he turned out to be far different than what he's made out to be in the Daily Prophet and all. Was respectful, presented himself as best as he could as a gentleman. More importantly, he was more interested in knowing more about me than trying to garner any sort of attention."

"Could be an act he was putting on," Marietta noted, letting out a tone of voice that sounded rather curious to Cho.

"Perhaps," Cho conceded with a shrug. "I've only been with him for a few hours. Not like I would be able to know for sure if he was the real deal in that time."

"Therefore, you should definitely see him again," Roger proclaimed with a chuckle.

"She does not need to see him again if she doesn't want to, Roger," Marietta stated with a huff. "Besides, there's no reason for her to any way." Cho was starting to feel really uncomfortable with the way Marietta and Roger were arguing with one another over how she would proceed with whether or not to see Harry again, trying to act as though they were her parents. An idea that scared her, now that she thought about it for a second.

"Then why did she yes when he asked her to go to the Yule Ball with him?" Roger questioned with a curious brow raised.

"I'm sure it was because she just wanted to go with whomever asked her first," Marietta answered before Cho could even open her mouth. "Isn't that right?" Cho hesitated to answer at first, glancing between her two friends and wondering how exactly she was going to respond. More importantly, she was concerned about how they would react to what she would say.

"Well, to be perfectly honest, I really had no desire to go to the Yule Ball at first," she managed to say. She did not need to wait a second longer to see Marietta looked quite stunned and taken aback at what she heard. Roger merely maintained his raised brow expression. "I said yes because I was curious as to why Harry Potter asked me, of any girl he could have asked." She waited for them to respond, seeing them both still display some state of disbelief.

"So he really was smitten with you, eh?" Roger noted, the grin returning to his face.

"There was apparently some thing different about me that charmed him," Cho said, forming a light little smile.

"Well, should make next year's Ravenclaw vs. Gryffindor match very interesting, then," Roger managed to say before taking a sip of his drink. "Perhaps he'll be so charmed with you that you'll be able to grab the Snitch without him ever registering the fact that he's playing a game."

"I highly doubt it's going to be that easy, Captain," Cho noted with a laugh. "He started to fancy me during last year's game and remember how that turned out for us."

"Then maybe you should flash him during the next match," Roger responded. Cho knew he was joking, but she jabbed him in the stomach nonetheless.

It was not long before Roger turned his attention away from Cho and joined the other students at the table in discussing the character of Professor Snape. Cho turned to Marietta, only to find her in a curious state. Marietta seemed to be focusing all of her attention on her dinner, although she was doing nothing more than play with her food. Cho thought about engaging in a conversation with her, but she had the feeling, from looking over the body language her friend was displaying, that it would probably be a better idea not to do so. It did leave her wondering why Marietta was acting like this all of a sudden.

Seeing that virtually every one else in Ravenclaw was too preoccupied to bother her, Cho decided to steal a glance at Harry. Maybe it had some thing to do with the fact that she had just spent the last several minutes talking about him, but now she had this urge to take another look at him while she had the chance. Peeking over her shoulder, she caught sight of him engaging in a conversation with his friends Ron and Hermione. It would appear that things had cooled between them as the last time she saw them together the previous night Ron and Hermione engaged in quite the argument. Still, her focus was upon Harry. He looked quite relaxed, enjoying his dinner while having a discussion with his friends. It brought a little smile to her face seeing him like this. Satisfied with the look that she got of him, she turned back to begin finishing off the rest of her dinner in peace.

* * *

><p>Harry knew Ron and Hermione were just dying to hear him open up about how the Yule Ball went for him. More importantly, he was very sure they wanted to know how well he got on with Cho Chang. This was quite evident with how they were mustering all of their will to simply not press him with the subject throughout most of Boxing Day, probably out of some sense of respect for his privacy. Or they were perhaps waiting for him to eventually give in and tell them himself. After all, he had generally been open to them in revealing information of just about every thing that had happened to him. Only he felt extremely nervous for some reason of talking about being with Cho. It was hard enough being around her, but to talk about her even to his two best friends seemed just as embarrassing to him.<p>

At first, they spent most of the day talking about what Ron discovered about Hagrid. Apparently, Ron found himself in the company of his brother Percy and looked for any excuse to get as far away from him as possible. He made his way into the courtyard and, trying to be careful not to run into Harry and Cho, instead found himself being within hearing distance of a conversation Hagrid was having with Madam Maxime at the base of a tall fountain. The sight of Fleur Delacour walking by with Roger Davies in a hurry forced Ron to hide on the other side of the fountain. He explained to a glaring Hermione and a concerned looking Harry that he did every thing he could to keep from hearing the conversation, even focusing his attention on a beetle he spied on the back of a stoned reindeer. But curiosity got the best of him and learned that Hagrid was half-giant.

This revelation would result in a rather interesting conversation about giants and the perception of them in the Wizarding community at large. One that, for a brief moment, took Harry away from even thinking about how he could possibly talk about his evening with Cho. He was more interested into learning why being a half-giant was some thing that Hagrid did not open himself up about, knowing how the history of giants was looked upon negatively due to their past association with Voldemort. He was so enthralled with the conversation that by dinner time he had convinced himself that Ron and Hermione would not press him about the Yule Ball. Then dinner was over and they were back in the Gryffindor common room. The ideal place for them to start asking questions just when he had let his guard down.

"So?" Hermione asked after the three of them placed themselves in a corner away from every one else. Harry seemed confused at first, not exactly sure what exactly she was asking him about. Until she elaborated. "How was your evening with Cho last night?"

If Harry had been drinking any thing at that instant, he would have promptly spit it out all over his two best friends. Instead, his cheeks began to heat up, no doubt turning pink with shyness. Hermione and Ron had leaned in, sly grins on both of their faces, just dying for him to talk. He tried the silent treatment, attempting to wait out their interest for as long as possible. It lasted all of two minutes before he was the one who cracked. They were not budging. Swallowing hard, he started to think about how exactly he was going to get through this.

"It, uh…" he managed to utter before letting out a cough. Boy, it felt at lot warmer than usual all of a sudden. "It was… fine. I mean, I'm, like, in one piece, and all." It was like he was trying to talk to Cho and not to Ron and Hermione. What in the world was going on with him? This could not possibly be normal behavior he was displaying.

"You were able to dance alright, then?" Ron questioned, a wicked grin forming on his face. It was like they were going after every hot spot, making sure that no stone was left unturned. It did not matter that in embarrassed the living hell out of him. Or maybe it was because it embarrassed the living hell out of him that they pounced at him the way they did.

"Sh-She… helped… me…" Harry nervously muttered. He was being so shy he wondered if they had heard him. Clearly they did based on the intrigued looks on their faces. If his cheeks had not been burning pink before, they were surely a deep shade of scarlet by now. Why was he having such a hard time talking about this? "She said I got better as the night went on."

"I kind of wished I paid some attention to see this first dance of yours," Ron stated with a chuckle. Normally Hermione would jab him or maybe even glare at him for saying some thing like that. It would appear that she either did not care or played along with him. It was like they enjoyed watching Harry squirm with shyness.

"What else did you guys do last night?" Hermione asked, making sure that the discussion would keep going.

"Well…" Harry uttered before swallowing again. "We went out into the courtyard for a walk. And talk. Walk and talk, that's all we did." He had this strange feeling that he really needed to emphasize the point that walking and talking was all he and Cho did in case not to say otherwise would open the door to some suggestive ideas of what might have happened.

"Walk and talk, eh?" Ron questioned in a sly manner. It was moments like these that Harry wondered why Ron was his friend. "What did you two talk about?"

"Um…" Harry muttered before pausing, darting his eyes this way and that while trying to figure out what he was going to say in response. "We talked about… Quidditch." Hermione looked slightly annoyed upon hearing this while Ron raised an amused brow. He felt the need to explain himself and quick. "I didn't want to ask some thing that might offend her or came off as too personal. And we had Quidditch in common, so I asked her if she was going to make a career in the sport. She's not and that she's only playing because apparently Ravenclaw were desperate for a Seeker."

"Why would they be desperate enough to go to her if she wasn't going to make a career in Quidditch?" Hermione asked curiously.

"She has a famous godfather," Harry replied, scratching the back of his head. "Liam MacPherson, I think his name was."

"Wait, wait, wait," Ron quickly said with a gasp. "She knows Liam MacPherson? Captain of the English World Cup team in 1982? Nearly got them into the finals?"

"I believe we're talking about the same guy, yeah," Harry answered with a shrug. "Never got to know how he became Cho's godfather, but he did give her a few lessons in playing Quidditch after she saw him play when she was six."

"So it would be reasonable to believe that her relationship to a great player like Liam MacPherson would be enough to justify putting her on the Ravenclaw team," Hermione summarized.

"Pretty darn good player in her own right, really," Ron noted. "Remember when Harry played against her last year? He had the Firebolt and yet she was able to block him before he could really build up some speed. And what about the game against Hufflepuff? She pulled some impressive moves to distract Cedric Diggory enough to beat him to the Snitch at the last second. I bet those lessons from her godfather have definitely been paying off." Harry was the only one of the two boys to notice that Hermione had rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly.

"Did you two talk about any thing else?" Hermione asked, displaying a tone of voice that made it clear how much patience she had left for discussing Quidditch. It brought Harry back to how he found it intriguing that Cho was able to be patient with him all of last night while it seemed that Hermione here could only stand things for so long.

"We ended up talking about Snape," Harry answered, again scratching the back of his head.

"How in the world did you end up going from Quidditch to Snape?" Ron questioned with a confused look on his face.

"Ran into him while he was breaking up couples who were doing things they were not supposed to," Harry answered. He did not know why, but he was suddenly starting to relax a little. Not being as nervous as he had been when the conversation started. Which confused him because he could not understand how it was his emotions managed to just shift without any form of recognition that it was happening. "He was with some one else and they might have been talking about some thing that bothered him because he was on a rampage. When he spotted me and Cho, he dared us to give him an excuse to take points away before telling us to walk away."

"Were you able to get a good look at who he was with?" Hermione asked. "Or what they may have been talking about?"

"Not really," Harry replied, shaking his head. "I was more concerned about getting Cho out of the line of fire. I kind of did tell her a bit about my beef with Snape, including how he was still on my case even though my dad saved his life." He seemed to think that what he said was a casual thing to say until he saw the looks Ron and Hermione displayed. "I didn't really tell her the circumstances of how he saved his life. Just noted how he gives me a hard time in spite of what happened." It appeared that they did not believe him, so he decided to switch the subject as quickly as possible. "Well, any way, we also ended up running into Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies. They were… kind of busy." That definitely got their attention, as both displayed some form of shock. Ron appearing to turn white while Hermione looking as though she was about to turn red.

"Harry!" Hermione nearly cried, but managed to keep her voice low.

"We didn't stop and stare on purpose," Harry tried to explain himself quickly before Hermione could say any more. "Cho actually thought the way Roger looked was rather funny and decided to embarrass him a little."

"How did she do that?" Hermione asked, still not letting up her frustration.

"She interrupted them by calling out some Quidditch call signal they use," Harry replied, not really conscious of the chuckle that came out of his mouth after he made the statement. "It was just as well that we ran into them, though. I can't imagine what would have happened if Snape caught them in the rosebushes."

"Well, you do have a point there," Hermione noted. She eased a bit on her disbelief, but it was still clearly present. No one seemed to be paying attention to Ron, who appeared to have turned into a white statue. Hermione cleared her throat, now seemingly wanting to change the subject herself. "Did you two do any thing else?"

"We went back in and danced until midnight," Harry answered. "During which she said that she had thought about not going to the Yule Ball before I asked her to go with me."

"Really?" Hermione questioned in surprise. "Virtually every girl in the school was gushing about wanting to go last night. Why wasn't she one of them? She's a fairly popular girl, too. She probably would have been expected to go."

"She said she wasn't interested," Harry replied with a shrug. There was a slight pause, as if he was being waited on to elaborate further.

"Okay, so if that's the case, then why did she end up going with you?" Hermione asked further.

"You're kidding, right?" Ron noted with a raised brow. It would seem that he had awaken from whatever paralysis he was under, though both Harry and Hermione remained unaware that it ever happened to begin with. "Harry could have picked just about any girl in the school to go to the Yule Ball with him and they would have said yes in a heartbeat. Any girl. He chooses her. You and I already know he's absolutely smitten with her." Hearing Ron say that caused Harry to blush a light shade of pink that fortunately went unnoticed. "But she doesn't know that."

"So what you're saying is that she was fascinated to know why he asked her," Hermione summarized.

"Of course that's what I said," Ron responded in disbelief. "Haven't you bee listening?" Hermione glared at him for a moment before turning her attention back to Harry.

"Well then, did she ask you why?" Hermione asked. Harry hesitated to answer for a brief moment, trying to think back and remember if he really did tell Cho why he liked her or if he just let his mouth run unconsciously. In turn, this started to make him nervous all over again in discussing the subject.

"I… think I did…" he managed to utter in reply.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron asked with a confused brow raised.

"I take it you had a hard time talking to her," Hermione noted. Harry immediately nodded in a sheepish manner. Hermione sighed, having seen that Ron still looked quite confused. "It goes back to what Harry said earlier, Ron. He liked her a lot that he was trying to be extremely cautious about what to say to her, hoping that she would not take any thing he said the wrong way."

"You were afraid she'd laugh at the idea that you were smitten with her?" Ron questioned Harry, still as bewildered as ever.

"Or worse," Hermione added. "That she might have disliked him in-spite of his crush for her." Harry flinched at hearing the last statement. Just the thought that her disliking him only intensified his nerves.

"But Harry said last night went fine for him," Ron noted. "So it sounds like she didn't dislike him, right mate?"

"Yeah…" Harry managed to utter quietly. He was not sure if there were still traces of pink on his cheeks.

"So any chance you two will hook up again?" Ron asked. Now Harry was very sure his cheeks were pink and there was nothing he could do to hide it.

"Um…" Harry muttered and followed with a cough. "It's… a thought…"

"It's a thought?" Hermione questioned, raising a curious brow. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, we're kind of busy and all…" Harry started to respond before trailing off, scratching the back of his head and hunching his shoulders while looking away from his friends. He really did not know what he meant, but he felt the need to give her some sort of answer and saying that he was busy seemed like the most plausible one he could think of.

"Oh, but of course!" Hermione exclaimed, as though she had just realized some thing. "The egg! You're supposed to be figuring out the clue from the egg regarding the Second Task. And we should also be doing the homework we've seem to have neglected, now that I think about it."

"Hermione, we're still in the middle of holiday break," Ron stated in a voice that was almost a mix of whining and pleading. "Who could think about homework when every one was more concerned about Christmas and the Yule Ball?"

"Well, both are over," Hermione declared. "Now we can concentrate our efforts on our studies."

"Hermione, there's still at least another week before we're back in class," Ron noted. "It's not like we really need to get back to our homework right away."

"Ron, the longer you keep putting off your studies, the less time you will have by the time you actually get around to working on them," Hermione reasoned sternly. "I'm not saying we should do every thing at once, although that just might happen if you wait until the last second, like you always do."

Seeing that Ron and Hermione were about to engage in another lengthy argument over homework, Harry decided to look for some thing to distract himself with. Scanning the common room, he settled on staring at the flames that continued to burn in the fireplace. It was the best he could come up with at the moment, wanting to be left alone to his thoughts. Quite frankly, even he would admit that it would probably be in his best interests to march upstairs and work on that Golden Egg to figure out what the Second Task might even be about. Yet he instead was far more interested in thinking about Cho Chang. More importantly, he was thinking about the possibility of seeing her again.

He just managed to survive arguably the most stressful situation of his entire life. Spending a few hours with Cho at a fancy event with dancing and talking. One would imagine that it could only get better from there, particularly when the first time turned out fine. But the idea of being with Cho again still terrified him. Because he still had no clue of what to do. Would he still have to act like a gentleman, thinking that to act out instead as though he were hanging out with Ron and Hermione would make her feel uncomfortable? What conversations could he possibly engage her in? Would he dare to get personal and pray that she would not get offended? How should he look? Was he supposed to keep wearing some thing like a dress robe? Would jeans and a shirt be considered sloppy? So many questions about how to proceed with a follow-up ran through his head, and he had a feeling that it was only going to get worse. And boy did it get worse in an instant.

Why oh why could there not be a class he could take on courting a girl? Why was it easier for him to feel relaxed around Hermione or Ginny or any of the girls on the Gryffindor Quidditch team and yet he was a blubbering idiot when with Cho? Why was she so different from all the other girls, as he had tried to explain to her his interest in her? Why was she the one that was different? Why was she the only one to make his stomach do flips at the mere sight of her? Why did he not feel this way about some other girl like say Fleur Delacour? Did his father ever feel this way when he first met his mother? How was he able to overcome his nerves? What made them fall in love and eventually get married? Was that going to be his future with Cho? Was he falling in love with her? Would she feel the same way about him?

While he did not necessarily pass out, he was nonetheless not conscious to his surroundings. Before he knew it, he was suddenly the only one in the Gryffindor common room. Every one had long since went off to bed. The fire in the fireplace was almost out, emitting only a small glow that barely gave light to the otherwise dark room. He had been so lost in his thoughts that the movement of time did not register for him. There was a phrase he was familiar with that he figured best described what just happened to him. The lights were on, but nobody was home. Harry sheepishly got to his feet and quietly made his way to bed, wondering if he was going to be able to get any sleep tonight. And if he did, would he end up dreaming about Cho again like he did the previous night? Would he continue to dream about Cho for many nights to come?

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Right from the start, this turned out to be a tricky chapter to write. It was essentially repeating what was already written in the previous chapters, but done to elicit reactions from others. I ended up rewriting this one so many times and was determined not to abandon the idea. Even better was that I felt the chapter was not getting long enough to my satisfaction and continued to wrap my head around how to add more. I thought about throwing in a dream sequence, but it felt so out of place that I ultimately cut it out again and went back to seeing if I could not expand upon what had already been written in the chapter so far. Maybe I should go back to responding to a review comment for a previous chapter. That should work. In fact, I am going to do that right now.

_Nauro – Cho passes as a lot more flirty than before._

It was not my intention to make her flirty, though in retrospect I can totally see how one could read her as such. I tried to pass her off as being a bit playful and mischievous, perhaps thanks in large part to having to hang around with the boys a lot as a result of her being the only female on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. My idea of how she would be flirty would probably be different than how I've written her as so far in this version. And if she does become flirty, Harry would surely combust out of shyness. At least, that is how I would see it.

Once the next chapter is up I will be the proud owner of a Cho Chang bust, which I purchased online using my birthday money. In fact, I'm hoping it will arrive within the next several hours after this very chapter is posted. Rejoice!

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	7. Ch 6: Receiving a Gift

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six<strong>

**Receiving a Gift**

It had been months since the Yule Ball. But for Cho, it felt as though it had only happened within the past couple of days. This was largely due to the fact that she was being pestered at every turn by oh so may girls wanting to know every thing about what happened between her and Harry Potter that Christmas night. Even girls who were in Ravenclaw, who had already heard the tale at least five times by now, still wanted to hear whatever Cho was willing to say. It was certainly getting to the point where she wanted to tell them off as they had become such a bother to her. Even Marietta, of all people, was making sly attempts to interrogate her as well. It was like she wanted to compare the prospective relationships, Cho with Harry and Marietta with Cedric. Marietta seemed to be taking great pleasure in noting that her relationship with Cedric was moving along rather nicely while it appeared that Cho barely had one with Harry. This kind of thing easily got to Cho and she would slowly separate herself from her friend, if only so that she would not get her ears filled with all of this gloating.

Then again, she had to admit to herself that there were times that she thought about Harry on her own. Every once in a while she would catch him trying to steal a look at her during lunch or dinner in the Great Hall. Upon being caught, she would watch him turn scarlet in the face and quickly look away. There was even one time where he was drinking pumpkin juice when she caught him, the result of which saw him spill his drink all over himself. She could not help but laugh quietly at his embarrassment, but it was hardly out of malice. Rather she was hoping that she conveyed that it was merely amusing and some what flattering that he would dribble whenever they locked eyes. At least, she was hoping that was the case. He seemed too humble of a person to deserve any of the mistreatment he received constantly, be it from the Slytherin students or more recently the gossip being spread by Rita Skeeter in all of the papers. To cause him any more worry, even if it was unintentional, would have made her felt bad.

Furthermore, she was coming to the realization that she was having dreams of being with him. Why this was starting to happen she was not sure. After several nights of not really understanding how Harry was appearing in them at all, Cho could see that she was imagining herself swept up in his arms as he stood in victory, having just won the Triwizard Tournament. It made no sense to her to have these dreams in the first place, or rather that was what she was telling herself in apparent denial. That line of thinking changed at the very end of the Second Task, catching sight of the Beauxbatons Champion Fleur Delacour planting a kiss on each of his cheeks. While she would later learn that it was merely out of appreciation for his concern for the safety of her little sister, Cho did finally admit to herself that there was a slight twinge of jealously of what she had seen. It certainly did not help with how the boys on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, and later Marietta and the other girls, constantly teased her at the idea that Harry would start to fancy Fleur over her.

It seemed to her that it was only a matter of time before either she or Harry would instigate a meeting with each other. An opportunity to simply get together and get to know one another a little better than they had through the Yule Ball. And with the dreams she had becoming just a bit more frequent with each passing week, she was starting to feel as though she should be the one to seek him out. It was as though these dreams she had were the driving force in her sudden desire to get in touch with Harry. Of course, she also wanted to make sure that it was a private meeting. If nothing else, she did not want the two of them to be bothered by a pack of annoying little love-struck girls while they were trying to engage in a simple conversation. Just the thought of them hardly getting to say a word to one another before a series of squeals made itself known made her shudder with displeasure.

The opportunity to meet with Harry privately managed to occur rather unexpectedly. She was the last to leave Defense Against the Dark Arts on the Friday before the Hogsmeade visit that had been scheduled for early March. She wanted to ask Professor Moody a few questions about the lesson he had just taught that afternoon and the conversation went a little longer than she had anticipated. By the time she left the classroom, she imagined that she was the only student who was not already in the Great Hall chowing down on some much needed dinner. This turned out not to be the case when she was about to pass the spiral staircase that led down into the dungeon floor. Harry came running up at full speed and very nearly ran her over had he not managed to catch sight of her in a split second. Cho gasped and hopped away from him while he struggled desperately to throw his momentum back before ultimately slamming against the nearest wall.

"Harry, are you alright?" she asked just as she was instinctively bringing both hands up to cover her mouth unnecessarily.

"Yeah…" he panted. "Yeah, I'm alright…" As he worked on catching his breath, he looked at her with a mixture of shock and terror. Presumably thinking about how awful he would have felt knocking her down had he not recognized her presence as quickly as he did. "Sorry about that… Should have watched where I was going."

"Apology accepted," she said, forming a smile in an effort to ease whatever tension was lingering. "I take it you just had Potions?"

"Double potions…" he responded through the rapid breathing. "Spilled some armadillo bile just as class ended… Was cleaning them up as fast as I could before Snape could come up with an excuse to give me detention…"

"Still on your case, then," she commented.

"I think he's going to keep picking on me even after I leave Hogwarts…" he proclaimed in an attempt at displaying some form of mockery. The two of them being able to share a gentle laugh meant that it was some what successful.

There was a slight pause between them. One that nearly felt as though it went longer than it did. At least, that was the way Cho saw it. She had been wanting a chance to speak with him privately for some time now and here it was right before her. Only she forgot to come up with a topic of discussion she would engage him with. Though she was determined to get to know Harry a little bit better, she was mindful of how she wanted to proceed with achieving this. Granted he did confess being attracted to her, she was not entirely sure if she wanted to go straight into asking some really personal questions. Much like how he was careful with what to say to her during the Yule Ball, she did not want to talk about a subject that would cause him discomfort. Easier said than done when she did not know too much about him outside of what had been written or gossiped about, which she felt were to be taken with a grain of salt.

"Do you mind if I ask you some thing?" she asked, looking to get the conversation rolling in any way she could, even without knowing what it is she wanted to ask him.

"Uh…" he uttered just as he took one last deep breath before finally regaining his full composure. Or rather as much of it as he could given that he was standing before her and was talking to her with no one else around. He may not have been displaying it, but she was certain that he was feeling just a little nervous at the moment. "Sure. What's on you're mind?"

"Well," she started to say before pausing for a brief second. She ran through her mind very quickly all of the questions she wanted to ask him. Within a second, she decided upon the first that she could think of. "We have a Hogsmeade visit tomorrow. I was wondering if perhaps maybe you and I could go together so that we could get to know each other a little better."

She watched as his eyes widened. He appeared quite taken aback as he had trouble saying any thing in that moment. Upon reflection, she could understand why he was reacting as such. If one were to break down her words to its basic core, they would be able to see that, whether she realized it or not, she had just asked him out on an apparent date. Coming to this conclusion, she had to muster a lot of strength to keep from suddenly breaking out in a laugh. If nothing else, she did not want to make him any more nervous than he seemed to be already.

"I, uh…" he managed to say before his voice trailed off. He swallowed and then coughed before trying again. "I would like to. Really, I would. It's just that…" He paused to bite his bottom lip for a moment. "I'm already meeting some one at Hogsmeade tomorrow. Seriously, I mean I'm being serious." It seemed as though he wanted to slap himself over the last part he said for some reason. He sure looked ashamed to have said any thing at all.

"Oh?" she responded. She was actually quite surprised to hear such an answer from him. The opportunity to spend a Hogsmeade visit with the girl he was smitten with, but he was instead declining because there apparently was some one else he had to meet. It made her even more curious about him, actually.

"Believe me, I'd rather go with you," he said suddenly, as if he needed to say so in some desperate attempt to save face and not appear rather insincere. "It's just that…" He paused again, perhaps trying to find the right words to say that would explain whatever it was that was now going to keep him from a chance to be with her. "I'm meeting a friend of my dad's."

"A friend of your dad's?" she asked, raising an intrigued brow.

"Yeah," he replied with a nod. "I don't get to see him often. He travels a lot, you see. And tomorrow is going to be one of the few times I'll get to catch up with him for a while."

"To learn more about your dad?" she questioned. There was a bit of sympathy in her voice, whether she intended for it or not.

"Pretty much, yeah," he answered. "And not just my dad, either. He knew my mom also. So it's a chance for me to know more about both of my parents, really."

Cho could not quite put her finger on it or truly be able to explain why, but she was certain that she could sense Harry was being honest with her. Perhaps it was the tone in his voice. There was some thing there that was making her believe that what he was saying was the case. That he was indeed going to be meeting this friend of his dad and learn more about his parents. She could only imagine what it must have been like for him, Harry Potter, to have been growing up these last several years without his parents around to raise him. In fact, she probably would not have been able to even come close to having a clue. Which in turn made her all the more fascinated ain wanting to get to know him that much more. Just as she was sure that he would like to get to know her even more as well.

"I see," she said with a disappointed sigh. Not so much disappointment with him, but instead disappointment with the situation. She hoped this was conveyed.

"I promise to go with you next time," he said rather suddenly and in a hurried voice. "I would love nothing more than to spend the day with you." This time, he actually slapped himself. It was more of his having slapped his hand over his mouth upon realizing what he had just said. More importantly, what word he had used.

"Is that so?" she mused, a sly grin beginning to form on her face. For some reason, she liked the idea of teasing him whenever he placed himself in an embarrassing situation. This was clearly one of them as she could see a slight shade of pink beginning to form on his cheeks. Seeing him appearing as nervous as he did, she thought it made him look cute and charming. "Then I guess I'll be holding you to that promise."

"Wha?" he squeaked, dropping his hand from his mouth unconsciously. It was as though he was trying to look shocked, but yet was also trying to appear sheepish and shy at the same time. Competing emotions that resulted in an expression that was about as goofy and silly as one could be. In seeing such a look on his face, she allowed herself to let a small, gentle laugh escape from her lips.

"You just promised to go to Hogsmeade with me on the next visit," she explained, hiding the glee she was having over this round of teasing she was conducting. "And I am counting on you to keep your word when the day comes. Is that some thing you can accept?"

She watched as he started to fidget, maybe even squirm a little. Hunching his shoulders and scratching the back of his head like some one who had just been caught doing some thing shameful and embarrassing and was paying the price. Sweat was beginning to slowly make their way across his forehead and strands of his shaggy, messy black hair were rising as though he had just been shocked with static electricity. All this for a short, yet no less excruciating moment of self-torture before finally drawing whatever strength he could to simply nod.

"Then it's a date," she said purposefully with a smile. The kind that she was certain was turning him into a puddle at the moment.

Then Cho stood on her tiptoes, leaned in close, and placed a kiss on his cheek.

When she pulled back, she watched as he blanched a pale white color that he could have easily been mistaken for a ghost. Even the famous lightning bolt scar on his forehead was lacking color and definition. The black pupils within his wide open green eyes had shrunk down into little dots so tiny that they were barely visible. His cheeks were burning an intense shade of pink and red so hot that at any minute steam would be emitting from them. This was the state he had frozen himself in for the few moments she spent just staring at him while retaining her smile.

"See you later, Harry," she finally said in breaking the silence. As she turned, she gave him a light wave before seemingly gliding away from him and toward the Great Hall. She managed to steal a look over her shoulder in time to catch him make a weak and futile attempt to wave back while still in the state of shock that he had been in since she kissed his cheek.

* * *

><p>It was a good while before Harry finally managed to enter the Great Hall for dinner. Though he arrived rather late, hardly any one in the room looked up to see him. Most did not seem to be register his presence at all. They were wrapped up in their own conversations and discussions as well as stuffing their mouths with food. It was as if no one was paying any heed to him, almost like he had been wearing his invisibility cloak for some odd reason. Harry did not mind the lack of attention. In fact, he was glad for it. It meant that very few, if any, would bother him about the way he looked. He was wearing a rather curious grin that was painted across his face and seemed to be strolling as opposed to merely walk as he passed by all of the others. One could easily believe that this was not the same Harry Potter that they had seen over the past three years. The old Harry did not look as though he was at relative peace like he did at the moment upon sitting down at the Gryffindor table.<p>

As he proceeded to eat his dinner, he took note that Ron and Hermione were giving him rather interested looks. He even spied Ginny catching a glance at him before turning back to converse with a first year named Natalie McDonald. Regardless, his friends did not bother him about the state of his appearance. They did ask him about his staying behind in potions after the class had ended. Speaking in a low voice so that they would not attract any unwanted attention, he explained that Karkaroff tried to have a conversation with Snape, showing him some thing on his arm before the potions master brought the meeting to an immediate end. Harry admitted to not being able to catch what was on the arm of the Durmstrang headmaster, but believed that it must have been important if even Snape was troubled by its mere presence. The three quietly agreed that this was some thing they needed to tell Sirius when they met him tomorrow.

Once dinner had been fully consumed, they made their way out of the Great Hall and up to the Gryffindor common room. Harry managed to occupy the couch closest to the fireplace, lying down on the cushions and, once in a state of relaxation, let out a gentle sigh. Again, he noticed Ron and Hermione catching sight of this and wearing curious looks on their faces. He did not seem to care, quite honestly. Instead, he shifted himself into a more comfortable position and formed the same grin he had worn moments earlier. It was when they were sure that no one else was around to overhear them did Ron and Hermione finally decide to question him about the uncharacteristically pleasant mood he was expressing.

"You alright there, mate?" Ron asked, dropping down into a seated position on the floor in front of the fireplace. "You're looking kind of funny."

"Funny?" Harry responded, raising a seemingly bewildered brow.

"You have been acting rather strange, Harry," Hermione said, leaning against the back of the couch to hover over him. "Not quite like your usual self, really."

"And how do I act when I'm my usual self?" Harry questioned, slipping a hint of mocking sarcasm in his voice.

"Well, you don't grin like you just talked Snape out of giving you detention," Ron answered, forming a smirk of his own. "Then there's that sigh you just let out."

"What about it?" Harry responded slyly.

"Some thing happen between the time you finally left potions to when you arrived late to dinner tonight?" Hermione asked bluntly.

Harry had a feeling his friends would confront him about the change in his demeanor even before he strolled into the Great Hall. During dinner, he put some thought into whether or not he should tell them about his meeting Cho. He had a strong feeling of not wanting to open up about what he believed was a prospective relationship with the girl he had been attracted to for more than a year. He really wanted to keep it as quiet as possible, even considering keeping it private from his friends. He did not like the idea of some thing happening to her because of him. It was bad enough that Ron and Hermione had to endure all kinds of torment, like what Hermione was presently experiencing as a result of the latest Rita Skeeter article. But then he also did not like the idea of keeping them in the dark about any thing. They were his friends and he could trust them not to take whatever he would say and turn it against him in some horrible fashion. Besides, it was not like telling them about his meeting Cho would be troublesome.

"Well, I almost ran over some one trying to get away from Snape," he began to say in reply.

"Almost, eh," Ron noted with a slight chuckle. "Sounds like the poor sod got lucky, if you ask me. Any one passing by the dungeon should know there would be folks running for the hills rather than stay a second longer with Snape."

"In this case, I kind of feel like the poor sod who got lucky," Harry said, sounding nervous for the first time all evening. "I nearly collided with Cho." If he did not have their full attention before, he certainly got it now.

"Cho?" Ron and Hermione both gasped.

"Yeah," Harry said with a nod. "Fortunately, she wasn't mad or any thing. Any way, we talked for a little bit." He paused and bit his bottom lip. "She… suggested going to Hogsmeade together."

"Really?" Ron mused with great interest. The smirk returning to his face. "Blimey, Harry, looks like you're going on a date tomorrow."

"Unfortunately, he's not," Hermione said with a slightly somber tone. "We're supposed to meet Sirius tomorrow, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Ron responded, sounding disappointed. "Bad break, mate."

"Not quite," Harry said. "I think I sort of promised I'd go with her on the next visit."

"The next visit?" Hermione questioned in a bit of shock. "Harry, that's not until next term."

"You make it sound like its a bad thing," Ron said.

"Well, it is a long wait," Hermione attempted to reason sheepishly. "Things could happen between now and then, you know. Some thing unforeseen."

"You reckon one of them is going to end up fancying some one else before the big day comes?" Ron proclaimed with an amused voice. Harry watched as Hermione blushed a light shade of pink on her cheeks from embarrassment, which Ron also caught sight of and chuckled. "So by your thinking, it would be in Harry's best interest to ask her out on a more immediate date as quickly as possible."

"That's not-" Hermione nearly screamed before stopping herself. "What I meant was-" She paused again to bite her bottom lip and actually think through what it was she should say. "I was going to say that Harry really needs to be sure about how serious he is of wanting to pursue a relationship with Cho before making any sort of promise. Like the one he made to her."

"He's been smitten with her for over a year now," Ron noted. "He went to the Yule Ball with her and she likes him in return. If you ask me, I imagine he's very serious about hooking up with Cho. Aren't you, Harry?"

Without really realizing it, Harry took a moment to think about the question at hand. Just how serious was he about pursuing a relationship with Cho? He would very much like to be in a relationship with her, having fancied her ever since he first laid eyes on her in the last Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw Quidditch game. But did he really want to be in a relationship with her? It was only now did he realize that, for whatever reason, she was not the "stolen treasure" he had to recover in the Second Task not too long ago. Could it be that he just merely had a crush on her? That perhaps he really did not like her in the romantic sense? Only if that were the case, then he was fairly sure that he would not have reacted the way he did when she kissed him earlier. It was a simple kiss and it was on his cheek. Yet it felt so much more. It did some thing to him that caused his senses to go haywire. Surely that meant he had a romantic interest in Cho if a simple kiss from her had such an affect on him. He received a kiss to both cheeks from Fleur Delacour and they did not amount to the same reaction he got from one kiss from Cho.

"Yes," he proclaimed, though he kind of felt silly answering in such a manner to his friends. "I'm very serious about wanting to go out with Cho."

"Alright, then," Hermione said with a nod of acceptance. "Just wanted to make sure. Don't want to see you go through a lot of trouble to go out with her only to find you don't like her as much as you thought you did."

"Thanks for your concern," Harry said. "Really, I appreciate it. But I really do want to go out with her. I just don't know to go about doing it."

"Maybe you can ask Sirius about how your parents hooked up when we meet him tomorrow," Ron suggested.

"That's not a bad idea, actually," Hermione said in agreement. "What better way to start knowing how to date than to learn what worked for your parents."

Though the discussion from then on shifted from his wanting to date Cho to what they planned to talk to Sirius about, Harry could not help but smile a little. Moments like these made him happy to have friends like Ron and Hermione. They clearly have his well being in mind just as he had theirs in his. Some thing he never really felt he had with the Dursleys in the ten years he spent with them before coming to Hogwarts. He really did not want to think about what life might have been like for him had he not found out he was a wizard. He did not want to imagine how horrible it probably would have been, still living in the small, spaceless cupboard underneath the stairs, forced to attend some ghastly school like Stonewall High. To never have had a chance to meet a girl like Cho.

Harry found it strange some times whenever his mind just seemed to wander from subject to subject with no apparent rhyme or reason. Some times it would be a bother, especially when he was trying rather desperately to concentrate on one thing in particular. But when he was not troubled by such a need, then he would allow his mind to go wherever it wanted. Lately, he found that his mind was coming back to Cho. That smile of hers, the one that always seemed to turn him into a puddle within seconds. How pretty she looked, even in comparison to an apparent beauty like Fleur Delacour. It was interesting that he would prefer Cho over Fleur. Virtually every male student in Hogwarts, as well as those present from the visiting schools, were falling head over heels for the Triwizard Champion from Beauxbatons. Only he was an exception. He would admit that Fleur was beautiful, but he just did not feel the same way about her as the others. Maybe it was because he was competing against her in the Triwizard Tournament. But then he was competing against Cho in Quidditch when he first met her and he often could not stop staring at her when he was supposed to be looking for the Golden Snitch.

Cho had asked him during the Yule Ball what it was about her that fancied him. He struggled to come up with a satisfactory answer not only to her, but also to himself by saying that he found her different from all the other girls and that it fascinated him. He could not explain it then and he still could not explain it now why it was. He just knew that there was some thing to her that separated her from the other girls that charmed him, perhaps even enchanted him. Would those be the right words to say? He overheard such words being said by some of the girls in Gryffindor as they were preparing for the Yule Ball and he seemed to believe they were the kind to be used in trying to describe what he was feeling for Cho. Who would have thought that romance would be far more complicated than trying to solve the puzzle of the clue to the golden egg for the Second Task? It made no sense to him. Perhaps Ron and Hermione were right. That he should ask Sirius tomorrow about how his parents got together and what he could learn from them. To be able to approach Cho and to try to feel as though he was some what prepared in how to even talk to her would certainly help in making him less nervous and thereby making him look less like an idiot before her, fearful that a slip-up would cause her to dislike him.

"Earth to Harry," Ron called to him rather suddenly. He even snapped his fingers in front of him. "You plan on sleeping down here in the common room tonight?"

"Huh, wha?" Harry uttered in confusion. He slowly began to notice that the common room was not as brightly lit as it had been moments before and it was virtually empty of bodies save for himself and Ron. Feeling quite embarrassed, he scratched the back of his head as he pushed off the couch he was lying on and stood up. "Sorry. Must have zoned out or some thing…"

"I think you did more than zone out, mate," Ron noted with a slight chuckle. "You looked like you were petrified for a moment except you had that grin on your face. You know, the one you wore to dinner." Harry was not sure if he was blushing, but he could definitely feel his cheeks getting warm.

"Maybe I should head off to bed before I forget," Harry muttered, quickly making his way toward the stairs that led to the dormitories. "Don't want to be late meeting Sirius and all."

"We're not meeting him until the afternoon," Ron said, following behind rather gleefully.

"You know what I mean," Harry said, now breaking into a full run up the stairs in an attempt to get away from his laughing friend and into bed as fast as possible.

Once he finally got dressed and into bed, it took him some time before he was able to sleep. It was not long before he started to dream. And what a dream it was. He was back in the Black Lake. It was not the Second Task, or even the Triwizard Tournament. For whatever reason, he alone had to rescue a stolen treasure. And that stolen treasure was not Ron, but Cho. He struggled to fend off a legion of Grindylows that were charging after him before finally managing to force them away using the Revulsion Jinx. When the coast was clear, he rushed desperately toward Cho and freed her. With all of his strength, he carried her up to the surface of the water, emerging just before he ran out of oxygen. Shortly after they had surface did Cho seemingly regain consciousness. Upon registering where she was and what presumably had happened, she smiled and lunged at him for an embrace. Next thing he knew, she was kissing him. Passionately. On the lips.

It was the most pleasant dream he could remember having.

* * *

><p>Cho arrived late to the Great Hall for breakfast Saturday morning. She felt that there was no real hurry to get downstairs and eat since it was the weekend and did not need to be in Hogsmeade any earlier than she had to. So when she entered the Great Hall, there was only a small number of students about, usually in groups of a few here and there. Not really thinking or caring of where to sit, she picked a random spot at the Ravenclaw table and found herself sitting across from a younger girl with straggly, dirty blond hair. She had a dreamy look to her that made one believe she was completely removed from her surroundings, even though she was reading a magazine. This girl Cho was some what familiar with, knowing of her reputation of not fitting the look of a typical Ravenclaw girl and had a personality that tended to alienate her from every one else. This was Luna Lovegood.<p>

"Hello, Cho Chang," Luna said in a sing-song voice with a gentle Irish accent. The tone in her voice left absolutely no clue as to what mood or feeling she was expressing. Furthermore, she had not once looked up from the magazine she was reading, which Cho spied was _The Quibbler_ and was also upside down. It was as though the girl was able to sense who it was that was now sitting across from her.

"Hello, Luna," Cho said, flashing a quick smile before turning to her breakfast. Admittedly, she did not know Luna all that well to have a proper opinion about her. She only really knew her by reputation, which was that she was a strange, odd little girl, and was not particularly pleased to hear that she believed some hogwash of a story that the Tutshill Tornadoes won matches through a combination of torture, blackmail, and illegal broom tampering. A story that seemed to have originated from the very magazine Luna was reading.

For a while, time went by uneventfully. Cho ate her breakfast, Luna read her magazine. Neither one bothered the other, not even daring to look up for a glance across the table. They were at relative peace with each other being present. Cho did allow for a moment to consider speaking to Luna, wanting to see if she could perhaps get to know her a little better. It was almost similar to Harry, how she was only familiar with him based on what she had read and heard before going to the Yule Ball with him. He turned out to be a nice guy and appeared to be unlike what his reputation made him out to be. Maybe it was the same way with Luna. Maybe she was not this "Loony Lovegood" she had been made out to be, even if she was reading a magazine upside down.

"Heads up," a familiar voice said. Seconds later, Cho saw Padma slide up to her after apparently rushing into the Great Hall. "Marietta's been looking for you the past hour, wanting to console you."

"Console me?" Cho questioned in confusion. "What for?"

"You're about to find out," Padma said, nodding her head over to the entrance of the Great Hall.

Cho looked over and caught site of a sympathetic looking Marietta heading her way. Trailing right behind were other girls from Ravenclaw like Lisa, Orla, and Samantha. Before she knew it, Cho found herself in an embrace from her friend, who seemed to be almost on the verge of tears, which only made the situation even more perplexing. Cho nervously looked around to see if the scene was attracting any unwanted attention. Just a few faces here and there glanced over, but fortunately returned to whatever they were doing. Cho did find it rather curious that Luna appeared not to be bothered to look away from whatever she was reading upside down in _The Quibbler_.

"Did you hear?" Marietta asked. Cho was fairly certain there may have been a hint of mockery in the tone her friend displayed. "I just read. Oh, you poor thing. How you must be suffering so."

"You can drop the act," Cho said, trying to wiggle her way out of the hug Marietta had locked her tight in. "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about."

"Okay, fine," Marietta sighed before releasing her grip and then sitting next to her friend. "You have no idea how much effort I put into making my best sympathy face."

"Couldn't have been too long," Cho responded with a curious brow raised. "You would not have known about whatever it is you wanted to talk to me about until this morning. Otherwise, we would have been having this conversation last night. Now can you please tell me what is so important for you to act like I need consoling?"

"You really haven't heard?" Marietta questioned in honest disbelief. After a quick moment where the two girls just stared at one another, Marietta pulled out a rolled up magazine from her coat pocket and handed it to Cho. "It's the centerpiece story of the new issue. I only just found out this morning."

Cho unrolled the magazine to find that it was a copy of _Witch Weekly_. She only ever read the magazine whenever Marietta wanted to show her some thing. As far as she knew, it was a magazine that catered to female readers of all ages offering tips on dating, makeup, fashion, and gossip. Clearly not a magazine she would read on a regular basis. She flipped to the center pages and found a color photograph of Harry. Next to that was presumably the article that instigated this whole run around in the first place.

"_'Harry Potter's Secret Heartache'_," Cho read aloud. She then immediately rolled her eyes and groaned. "Tell me you did not get all worked up because of this."

"It's a pretty well written piece, I must say," Marietta reasoned with a smirk on her face. "Mentions that Harry secretly pines for Hermione Granger, only she appears to fancy Viktor Krum."

"I fail to see how this is supposed to be a big deal," Cho said while reading the article further.

"Well, it does present the possibility that Harry and Hermione might be an item and not know it," Marietta noted. "I mean, they're always hanging out together."

"We're always hanging out with Eddie Carmichael, but I know you'd drop dead before you'd even consider dating him," Cho retorted. Even Marietta joined the other girls in laughing along to this statement.

"Alright, I'll give you that," Marietta said. "But he's hardly ever seen interacting with other girls. So when was the last time you spoke to him?"

"Yesterday, as a matter of fact," Cho answered calmly.

"Really?" Marietta gasped in surprise and intrigue. The others girls cooed with romantic delight. "When did this happen?"

"Just before dinner," Cho replied. She proceeded to finish her breakfast, having a fairly good idea how this conversation was going to go at this point.

"And why did we not know about this until now?" Marietta asked, leaning in so that she could listen more clearly.

"Because no one asked," Cho answered before swallowing the pieces of egg in her mouth.

"Well, I'm asking now," Marietta said, the sly grin on her face growing wider. "So what did the two of you talk about?"

"Hogsmeade," Cho responded simply.

"Oh?" Marietta uttered, her interest piqued even more as the other girls squealed softly. No doubt waiting with anticipation over what Cho will reveal next. "Sounds like the two of you are going together. Is that right?"

"He's meeting some one else today," Cho answered. This resulted in the other girls letting out moans of displeasure.

"Let me guess," Marietta started to saying response. "He's going to Hogsmeade with Hermione Granger."

"Actually, he's going to meet a friend of his father's," Cho said.

"A friend of his father's?" Marietta repeated. The tone in her voice made it clear that she was not buying it. "Is that really the best excuse he could come up with?"

"Who said it was an excuse?" Cho retorted. "He actually seemed disappointed that he was busy, really. Promised to go with me on the next visit." The other girls cooed again with a slight hint of swooning from the younger ones.

"You do realize that's not until next term," Marietta noted, a curious brow raised at her friend. "A lot could happen between now and then."

"You seem to believe Harry might stop fancying me before the next Hogsmeade visit," Cho summarized aloud.

"Well, he is a young lad, after all," Marietta began to explain. "You two haven't exactly been together all that often. Hardly ever, in fact. Who's to say that some beauty will come along that will catch his eye and make him forget all about you. Remember the way he reacted when Ms. Fleur Delacour pecked him on each cheek at the end of the Second Task?"

Cho knew all too well the grief she was receiving from Marietta and the others regarding the Second Task. They reminded her constantly how she was not his "treasure" he had to rescue from beneath the Black Lake, unlike how Marietta was the "treasure" Cedric Diggory had to rescue. They also made sure to point out at every turn the look Harry displayed when Fleur kissed both of his cheeks. Noting that his face was burning and that they were quite sure that steam would be coming out of his ears, which themselves were turning pink. It was almost as though they were presenting proof beyond a reasonable doubt that his interest in her was not what it seemed before.

"Yes, I do recall the way he looked when Ms. Fleur Delacour kissed him on both cheeks," Cho responded. Then she took a deep breath, unsure of whether or not she should indeed reveal what she was about to reveal. "It paled in comparison to how he reacted when I kissed one of his cheeks."

Marietta and the other girls all let out a collective gasp. Their eyes had shot up, staring at Cho with absolute shock and disbelief. Their mouths twitching, almost as though they were completely unsure of what to say. Lisa, Orla, and Samantha huddle together into one big group hug, each one almost ready to burst with excitement. Marietta appeared as though she was about to fall off her seat and was not aware of it. Cho glanced over to see Padma looking just as taken aback as the others and was frozen in a petrified state. Out of curiosity, Cho then looked to see if Luna overheard conversation that was going on and perhaps reacted to the bombshell that had been dropped. She caught sight of Luna quickly focusing her eyes back on her magazine. Seeing all of these reactions made Cho crack a slight grin.

"You… did… not…" Marietta managed to finally utter, speaking each word in a low voice.

"I did," Cho responded. "And I would dare say it left a lasting impression upon him."

From that point forward, Cho ate the remainder of her breakfast in relative peace. Marietta and the other girls remained fixed in their shocked expressions. Luna was still reading her copy of _The Quibbler_ upside down. Perhaps more importantly, the world did not implode as Cho was concerned might have happened upon revealing to others that she had kissed Harry on the cheek. She could not explain, or even understand herself, why she had this opinion in the first place. Perhaps it had to do with the way folks reacted to each and every thing that happened to Harry. The idea of how folks would handle the news that the girl he had been smitten with for more than a year kissed him, even if it was on the cheek, made her think that there would be all kinds of pandemonium.

It was when she finished her breakfast and left the Great Hall did the pandemonium start to build.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Boy, did I not hurry to update this chapter or what. My apologies, every one. A lot happened over the last three months, mostly personal. I will say that I also had some moments of writer's block, but I'm hopeful that will not be the case as I immediately start writing the next chapter. What helps is that I recently obtained the Ultimate Editions of all the films on blu ray. Yes, glorious blu ray. In fact, I'm watching _Goblet of Fire_ as I write this. Plus, I obtained the Cho Chang bust I mentioned I was getting in the last chapter.

_readme-silly - All your characters talk like they're reporting on their lives..._

I wasn't sure how to take this, given that it was commented to a chapter in which such dialogue was acceptable, at least to me, as Harry and Cho were being asked to detail the events of the Yule Ball. Nevertheless, I did make an honest attempt to improve upon the dialogue in this chapter, even though I had once more included moments where the two are explaining things to others. Let me know if you think I'm on the right track or not.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	8. Ch 7: Seeking Advice

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

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><p><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>

**Seeking Advice**

This was not necessarily the ideal setting Harry would have liked to have met Sirius in, but there really was not much of a choice under the circumstances. The public at large still viewed his godfather as a Death Eater, a felon, and a murderer. Being seen out and about was certainly not the way to go for Sirius to avoid capture. So here they were, with Ron, Hermione, and the hippogriff Buckbeak also present, inside a cave in the mountains outside of Hogsmeade. Sirius was the closest thing Harry had to a parent and he had to meet him in such uncomfortable conditions, seeing him as ragged and untidy as he did. The only thing that eased his concern slightly was that at least his godfather did not appear as gaunt as he had been the year before, when he had just escaped from Azkaban.

"You say your brother's Crouch's personal assistant?" Sirius asked Ron in his ever familiar deep, raspy voice. "Any chance you could ask him if he's seen Crouch lately?"

"I can try," Ron answered in a rather doubtful manner. "Better not make it sound like I reckon Crouch is up to any thing dodgy, though. Percy loves Crouch."

"And you might try and find out whether they've got any leads on Bertha Jorkins while you're at it," Sirius added, gesturing to one of his copies of the Daily Prophet.

"Bagman told me they hadn't," Harry noted.

"Yeah, he's quoted in the article there," Sirius said, nodding at the paper. "Blustering on about how bad Bertha's memory is. Well, maybe she's changed since I knew her, but the Bertha I knew wasn't forgetful at all. Quite the reverse. She was a bit dim, but she had an excellent memory for gossip. It used to get her into a lot of trouble. She never knew when to keep her mouth shut. I can see her being a bit of a liability at the Ministry of Magic. Maybe that's why Bagman didn't bother to look for her for so long…" He heaved an enormous sigh and rubbed his shadowed eyes for a moment. "Any thing else you three think I should know about?"

Harry was about to shake his head in response when he felt as though some thing was slightly nudging his side. He looked and quickly caught sight of Hermione looking at him. She then nodded her head toward Sirius, which merely perplexed Harry. So she nodded her head in the direction of Sirius again. It took a brief moment for Harry to finally realize what it was that Hermione was implying. This caused his cheeks to blush a light shade of pink. He cleared his throat, which garnered the attention of his godfather unintentionally, and started to speak.

"I, um…" he managed to utter before stopping himself. He swallowed hard and scratched the back of his head before he finally continued. "I was kind of wondering if I could… ask you about some thing…"

"Oh?" Sirius responded, raising a curious brow. Harry took a deep breath.

"Could you…" Harry started before he hesitated and paused briefly. "Could you tell me about… how my parents got together?"

For the first couple of seconds, Sirius merely stood in place, frozen without any sort of hint of an expression to show. Slowly but surely, a wicked grin began to form on his lips. Harry was also certain that he could see a little color starting to reappear in his godfather. There even seemed to be a twinkle in his eyes. Almost without warning, Sirius dropped himself into a sitting position in front of Harry, looking as excited as a kid at Christmas while managing to fix his entire attention upon his godson. Harry honestly did not know quite how to react and was content with just blinking a couple times.

"You met some one," Sirius said simply. The blush Harry had on his cheeks intensified. Sirius widened his grin. "Tell me about this special person and I'll tell you about your parents."

Harry again hesitated, wondering if he should really tell Sirius about Cho. It was hard enough talking about her to Ron and Hermione, now it seemed like he was opening up more and more. He felt as though he really should not talk about her. Fearful that some thing bad might happen. There was the obvious fear that she would end up not liking him or that she was only returning his affections because he was famous. But he was also afraid of what might happen to her simply because she was associated with him in some way. Ron and Hermione were his best friends and they often get caught in the crossfires, even if they put themselves there most of the time. He really did not want to see any one else, especially Cho, in the same position.

But then again, this was a rare opportunity. To converse with his godfather. Some thing he so desperately wanted to do for the last several months. To be able to open up with the person who was the closest he would ever have to a father figure. Closer than Professor Lupin seemed to be last year, closer than Mr. Weasley had been for the past few years. Even closer than Professor Dumbledore had ever been. He had only known Sirius for a short amount of time, and yet he could feel in his heart just how much this man meant to him. If there was one person in the whole world he could talk to about any thing and trust would be in good hands, it was his godfather.

So Harry proceeded to tell Sirius every thing that he could about how he came to be attracted to Cho Chang. He paid some attention to the way his godfather reacted, watching his smile getting wider and wider with each passing moment. Harry could also see that Ron and Hermione were paying close attention to him, even though they had already heard him talk about Cho before. Clearly they were finding him talk lengthy about some thing other than mysteries and dangerous situations amusing for a change. Particularly when it was about a girl he was smitten with. When he finished, Sirius relaxed in his sitting position and exhaled in a curious manner.

"Mind if Harry and I speak alone about this for a moment?" he said to Ron and Hermione while maintaining eye contact with Harry.

Harry could see that Ron and Hermione were taken aback that they were seemingly not allowed to remain present for the conversation. They looked to him, only he kept his attention focused on his godfather. Finding that they were not going to get any help from him apparently, the two sighed, got up, and presumably walked over to Buckbeak in an effort to keep themselves occupied. A minute later, Sirius took a deep breath and then grabbed his godson by the arms in a tight, yet affectionate manner. His smile widening as far as his lips would allow.

"You have no idea how much your parents and I looked forward to this moment," he proclaimed in a gleeful manner Harry had never seen before. "Many nights we spent while your mom was still carrying you talking about whether or not you'd be a ladies' man or the shy, quiet type. Your mom wanted you to be the latter so badly, she was terrified to death of how much like your dad you would have been otherwise."

"My dad was a ladies' man?" Harry asked curiously.

"Well, not necessarily," Sirius answered with a chuckle. "If any one in the bunch was a ladies' man, it was me. Your dad had his fair share of admirers, but he only had eyes for Lily. Trouble was that she didn't really have eyes for him in the beginning. From day one on the Express, she always thought of him as a pompous and arrogant brat."

"My mom didn't like my dad?" Harry questioned with disbelief.

"More like she wasn't a fan of his," Sirius replied. "And she wasn't entirely wrong in her initial assessment of him. Your dad was a bit pompous and arrogant. But he was also very bright and very caring, which were qualities your mom failed to see until the latter years at Hogwarts. She usually saw your dad horsing around while she was working hard to be the top of the class. I always wanted to pull a prank or two on her because she was so prim and proper that we often thought of her as a stuck-up. But your dad was so smitten with her that he decided to instead try to woo her. He ended up embarrassing her far worse than I could have done if I had pranked her."

"How did my dad embarrass my mom trying to woo her?" Harry asked, though he started to wish he had not done so.

"Easy," Sirius answered with another chuckle. "He made an idiot of himself. I really cannot tell you why he thought that was the best way to court your mom, but he did it and she usually ended up running away in a huff. Any self-respecting girl would given the crazy antics James pulled. I remember one time in third year during lunch, he simply jumped up onto the Gryffindor table and proclaimed that he was going to ask Lily to a Halloween dance that was being put together. Horrified, your mom dumped three cups of pumpkin juice all over him and stormed right out of the Great Hall. My favorite was a couple years later. We had some class out over on the pier there by the Black Lake. Any way, lessons were over and your dad walked up to Lily, dropped down on one knee, and proposed to her. She turned so white, you would have sworn she was a ghost. She pushed James into the lake and ran back to the castle screaming in outrage. Your dad wondered if that meant she was going to think about it, to which I was very close to having to go to the hospital wing I couldn't breathe from laughing so hard."

"Then how did my parents ended up getting married if my mom didn't love my dad?" Harry questioned, a sense of desperation in his voice. "Did he use a love potion or some thing?"

"Of course not," Sirius answered, apparently catching wind of how his godson was reacting to the story and looked to set him straight. "Your mom very much loved your dad. It just took her a while until she realized how much of a good person he really was. It helped that he toned down his antics after saving Snape, but I can assure you that she would have been nonetheless charmed by him. In fact, she admitted that she always found him charming. It's just that she was listening to her head for a good while and logic dictated that he was a prat who should be avoided at all times. Her heart, on the other hand, was telling her that she should give him a chance. When she did finally listen to her heart, they were inseparable. And I know for certain that you were born because the love they shared was honest and true."

Harry really did not know how to take the words his godfather was telling him. There was a part of him that was not buying the reasoning behind how his parents got together, that there must be some thing that Sirius was not telling him. This side of him even wondered if his parents really did love each other as much as Sirius said that they did. But then there was the other side of him, trying to comfort him into accepting what he had heard. Perhaps love was just a little funny. That there was no rhyme or reason to it. The two unlikeliest of people could be in love even when logic dictated that they should not. It made no sense, and yet perhaps it was not supposed to. Because, as Sirius had explained, it was not about the mind, but the heart. At least, that was how he was understanding it.

"So how do I listen to my heart?" Harry asked almost quietly.

"Just be yourself," Sirius replied with a smile.

"How do I be myself?" Harry questioned back.

"Don't be any one or any thing you're not," Sirius answered back. "Besides, I really shouldn't have to tell you how to be yourself when you've been doing that your whole life. You do what you think is right and you go with it."

Harry wanted to responded, but could not come up with any thing to say. At the same time, Sirius asked for the time and suggested that the three students head back to Hogwarts before it got too late. They all seemed to agree to this and began making their way out of the cave and down the mountain side path leading them to Hogsmeade, Sirius tagging along for a short distance after having transformed into a dog. As they walked, Harry allowed himself to think about what he learned about his parents and apparently about romance in general. If he understood his godfather correctly, his parents fell in love because they followed their hearts and he should follow his heart by being himself.

But surely it was not as simple as it sounded, could it? He was certain that if he had been himself he never would have been brave enough to ask Cho to the Yule Ball in the first place. Right? He was scared to death to approach her, let alone talk to her. So much fear and doubt had been swimming in his head before that fateful day at the Owlery. What if she had said no? What if she did not like him? Then Harry reflected a little more on this and came to a realization. He found the courage to ask Cho to the Yule Ball because he did not listen to his mind. His mind was telling him to run for the hills, not even daring to let her catch sight of him. He instead did what his heart guided him to do. Sirius was right, he had been himself his whole life. So why should he keep overcomplicating things for himself by continuing to think too hard on it like he was doing now?

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><p>Cho was beginning to wonder if Marietta was merely teasing her over the whole love triangle gossip. Ever since the article about Harry, Hermione, and Viktor Krum appeared in the Daily Prophet, it was the talk of all the girls from all three schools present at Hogwarts. No matter where Cho went, she would catch a conversation or two taking place regarding the subject. As patient as she was trying to be, she had to admit that it was getting underneath her skin. Marietta adding fuel to the fire, even if it was supposedly done in a joking manner, was only frustrating her more. By the third day, Cho was desperate to find some thing, any thing for that matter, to take her mind off the ridicules story that did not seem to want to die down. Walking into the Great Hall for breakfast the following morning, she found her solution in the unlikeliest of places.<p>

"Hello, Luna," she said as she sat herself across the younger girl at the Ravenclaw table.

"Hello, Cho Chang," Luna responded in her sing-song, Irish voice. As with before, she did not look up from the magazine she was still reading upside down.

"Say, Luna…" Cho began. She paused briefly, wondering if she really should go through with this. It was not that she did not like Luna. She hardly knew her. She was just concerned that she would come off looking like she was messing with her, using her as a pawn to distract herself from all of the gossip flying around the school. "Do you mind if I take a look at your magazine when you're done?"

Luna looked up from her magazine in surprise. At least, that was what Cho thought she did. The way Luna looked back at her made it really hard to tell just what kind of expression was painted across her face. There was a far away, dreamy look to her that Cho found to be quite intriguing. It would be easy to believe that this girl might have seen every thing that there was to see and would seemingly not be bothered by any thing from this point on she could possibly encounter. Such as being asked by some one like Cho if she could read her magazine.

"Oh, you can read it now if you want," Luna replied. The tone of her voice left absolutely no clue as to what feeling she might be expressing, if at all. She quietly and, in an almost rhythmic-like motion, closed the magazine and handed it over to Cho. She then gave her a light, little smile, that looked as though she seemed to have been wearing it all the time. "I've already re-read it eight times now and I think I figured out how to prevent a Wrackspurt from making people's brains go fuzzy."

Cho honestly did not know what to say after hearing some thing like that. She understood that The Quibbler was a magazine filled with strange oddities, but that sounded unlike any thing she could have possibly imagined. She did not even know what on Earth a Wrackspurt was supposed to be. And they supposedly caused the brain to go fuzzy? She quietly thanked Luna for the magazine and, with great reluctance, opened it up and started to read. Luna, meanwhile, seemed perfectly content with sitting in place and humming to herself while looking up at the ceiling in an enchanted daze.

It took Cho all the strength she had inside of herself to keep from laughing upon reading the very first paragraph. The absurdity of it all was quite breathtaking. The Minister of Magic was in possession of an Umgular Slashkilter? And the enthusiasm being displayed was remarkable. So much so that she felt encouraged to keep reading. To discover more strange and wild theories about the world at large no regular person would ever dream about. Within minutes, she was finding the sheer creativity of it all rather fascinating. As a matter of fact, she had become so absorbed in the magazine that it was a while before she noticed that Marietta and some of the other girls had been sitting beside her and were trying to get her attention.

"Tell me you're not seriously reading that," Marietta said once Cho was finally able to comprehend her surroundings. Her friend had more than just a bewildered look on her face. It was stunned disbelief. Again, Cho had to work hard to restrain herself from laughing.

"I am," Cho responded honestly. "And I have to say… I think I'm getting hooked."

"You actually like this stuff?" Marietta gasped in further shock.

"I'll take having to know what to do whenever I encounter a Nargle over the latest rumor from the Daily Prophet any day of the week," Cho proclaimed. She suddenly heard an odd squeaking sound just as she was about to resume reading the magazine. It did not take her long once she started to look around to find that the source of the sound was Luna, who appeared to be giggling rather quietly. Cho assumed it was out of amusement, the girl widening her smile if only for a little bit more, making her believe that this was the case.

"If you're doing this just to get me to stop blabbing on about what everyone else is talking about, I'll do it," Marietta stated, throwing up her hands like she had been defeated. Then she appeared to cautiously give Cho directions of what she should do next. "Just return to reality and put that thing away slowly."

"I mean it, Marietta," Cho answered with a curious sigh. "I don't think I want to." Marietta and the other girls looked quite horrified at what they were hearing. Cho herself was dumbfounded that she indeed said what she said aloud and meant it. Luna looked as though she was not phased by any thing that was going on, still sitting there and was humming once again. "I have to ask, Luna. What can you tell me about the Blibbering Humdinger?"

Luna seemed to have no problem revealing all that she knew about such a strange creature. In fact, she appeared to be speaking in a rather casual manner. At least, this was the impression Cho had seeing Luna not once display any change in her demeanor as far as she knew. Luna looked quite peaceful and content. Marietta and the other girls, on the other hand, were aghast. Cho was certain that it was more to do with her willingly listening to Luna talk about the Blibbering Humdinger than with hearing the odd details of the creature itself. Though she had to admit that she herself was wondering why she was finding these weird things interesting all of a sudden.

Still, she thought it was intriguing that Marietta and some of the other girls were still seated around her the further along Luna merrily went in describing the Blibbering Humdinger. It surely was not out of the same odd interest that Cho had in listening to such a wild tale. Perhaps it was because Marietta wanted to show that she was willing to endure hearing such nonsense if Cho was going to. Whatever the case may be, Marietta was sitting there, getting bewildered with each passing second listening to Luna speak. Cho was not sure right away if this was some thing to be admired or to find amusement in.

"Fascinating," Marietta managed to utter, presumably in a sarcastic tone, when Luna had finished.

"At least we now know what to do if we ever come across a Blibbering Humdinger suddenly," Cho noted, a sly smile forming on her face that was directed at her friend before turning back to Luna. "Thank you for sharing, Luna. And thank you again for letting me read your magazine. Perhaps you'll let me know when you get the next issue?"

"Okay, time to leave the Twilight Zone!" Marietta announced, getting to her feet and pulling Cho up with her. They had just managed to take two steps away from the Ravenclaw and were turning to face the double doors that would lead them out of the Great Hall. Then they came to a sudden halt, both girls letting out a gasp of surprise. They stopped moving in part so that they would keep from bumping into the person who was now before them.

"Harry!" Cho uttered, almost in a breathless tone. She could feel Marietta clutching both of her arms, as though she was trying to hold her up from fainting. While this was not necessarily going to happen any time soon, she nonetheless did not feel like trying to wriggle free at the moment.

"Cho!" Harry blurted out, though trying to keep his voice down, like he was afraid if his voice got any louder it would bring about disastrous results. And this was before he started to fidget like he seemed to do every time he talked to her, nervously scratching the back of his head while trying hard not to blush. "Sorry. Almost ran into you again."

"Well, we're still standing," Cho responded with a light laugh. She tried to stand straight, but remembered that Marietta was holding on to her. And she apparently wanted to remain in her present position of half hugging and half holding her friend while wearing an anxious and ridicules looking grin. "You remember Marietta, right? She was with Cedric at the Yule Ball."

"Oh," Harry said, looking as though he was just realizing right then that there were other people around. "Hi, Marietta." He gave out a light wave while Marietta merely nodded and let out a squeak of some sort.

"The awe-struck girls sitting over there are our friends in Ravenclaw," Cho added, nodding her head over to the group who had dropped their jaws and were each holding their breath in anticipation. The only one looking any different being Luna, who maintained the same expression she had been wearing all morning.

"Hello, Harry Potter," Luna said in her sing-song tone.

"Um, hi," Harry managed to say, lightly waving to the younger girl before letting out a nervous cough and turning his attention back to Cho. "I, um… If I'm intruding or any thing…"

"Oh no, by all means," Marietta said rather suddenly. She even tried to push Cho forward a couple inches more. "Ask her any thing you want." Cho tried to elbow her friend in reaction to what had just been said aloud, but Marietta managed to position herself and hold Cho in a way as to be able to avoid receiving any unnecessary physical contact. Unable to hit her friend, Cho sighed and rolled her eyes.

"You're not intruding, Harry," Cho spoke calmly. "What would you like ask me?" She was quite certain that the added attention upon them was making Harry all the more nervous to say any thing at all. It was difficult enough for him to speak to her in private, now he had to ask her some thing while so many others were listening in.

"Well, um…" Harry began to say before he stuttered himself into a pause. Scratching the back of his head again and looking away shyly for a moment, he was that much closer to blushing a shade of pink when a few of the girls listening in gave out hushed squeals of excitement. It took him some time before he mustered the courage to continue. "I was wondering… if you don't have a problem or any thing…" He paused again to cough, the girls now gasping collectively in anticipation. "With me being in the Triwizard Tournament and all, it's made studying more difficult to do than it already was, you know. So I was wondering if… if you would be willing to help me…"

The girls reacted some what as Cho expected them to. It was not quite the kind of question they were hoping Harry would Cho. They clearly wanted him to ask some thing more intimate. A study lesson sounded less interesting than say a private walk alone the Black Lake. Then again, perhaps he was asking for a private study lesson. And every girl in Hogwarts knew what a boy meant when he asked for a private study lesson. The volume of their squeals was barely above a whisper, but it was loud enough for Harry and Cho to hear. Cho really wanted to slap her hand over her eyes in embarrassment, but Marietta was preventing her from doing so by maintaining a tight grip on both of her arms. Harry turned a light shade of pink, having surrendered to the seemingly inevitable of his blushing, which was bound to happen at some point.

"Yes, I would be willing to help you with you studies, Harry," Cho said, again speaking calmly. She was trying to keep from reacting to how much tighter Marietta made her grip on her arms along with the additional squeals from the other girls. "Are you free on Sunday?"

"Uh…" Harry uttered. He was apparently in a state of shock that she once again agreed to do some thing with him, just like when she agreed to go to the Yule Ball with him. Once he realized that she said more to her answer, he returned to stuttering and fidgeting his way to properly respond. "Oh, uh, sure. Yeah, I'm free on Sunday."

"Let's meet at the library at around ten in the morning, okay?" Cho suggested.

"Okay," Harry answered breathlessly.

For the next moment or so, Harry and Cho did nothing more than stare at one another with small smiles forming on their faces. The other girls watched this in delight. To their credit, they were doing all they could to keep from squealing out again, holding their breaths as they waited for some thing to happen. Marietta still maintained her hold on Cho, no doubt wanting to be front and center for whatever might occur between her and Harry. The moment was broken up when the deafening sound of a howler was heard near the Gryffindor table. Every one looked over to see that Hermione Granger was being screamed at for presumably leading Harry astray emotionally.

"I better go…" Harry said nervously, looking as though he was trying not to appear guilty over what was happening to his friend. He then looked back up at Cho and waved. "I'll see you Sunday, yeah?"

"I'll be there," Cho responded, managing to give out a wave of her own despite the grip Marietta maintained. Harry hesitated to leave before finally managing to turn away and head over to the Gryffindor table. Cho waited a while, giving her friend able time to let go of her, before finally having to force it by wriggling free. She then turned to the other girls and sighed in a disapproving manner. "Honestly, you're all supposed to be from Ravenclaw. What happened to the dignity each one of you possess?"

"Oh, lay off them, Cho," Marietta said with a light laugh. "Besides, how often do we get to see one of our own turn Harry Potter into a blubbering fool? And do my ears deceive me or did you plan a romantic rendezvous with him at the library on Sunday." The other girls cooed with great interest.

"Marietta, I highly doubt a romantic rendezvous is what Harry intended when he asked me to help him with his studies," Cho stated, shaking her head in the process. "You saw for yourself just how nervous he was to even talk to me."

"It could have been because us other girls were around to watch and he was merely acting as a result," Marietta reasoned with a sly smile forming on her face. Cho rolled her eyes with annoyance.

"Then you all can come to the library on Sunday and see for yourself," Cho responded. A second later, she instantly regretted ever saying that aloud. The other girls began to coo again and Marietta was grinning from ear to ear. Cho tried to quickly come up with some sort of correction to what she had said, but knew there was no chance of that. With a defeated groan, she dropped herself into a seat and buried her face in her hands out of sheer embarrassment.

"Does that mean I'm invited, too?" Luna asked in a seemingly casual tone.

* * *

><p>So this was what following his heart was like. Stroll up to Cho Chang at breakfast with no real idea as to what he was going to even say and then come up with the brilliant idea of asking her to help him with his studies. Harry did not know whether he should be revolted at or proud of himself. He was also beginning to wonder if this was some cruel joke that his godfather had set him up on. Never before had his heart been beating so fast, faster than any time he played Quidditch or went up against some monster. Not even when he faced Voldemort himself. When Cho said that she would help him with his studies, he was quite certain his heart was going to shoot right up out of his mouth as opposed to bursting through his chest. It was only later in the day that he finally had the feeling like he was about to vomit.<p>

As Sunday approached, Harry spent as much time as he could thinking hard about what he did, how he did it, and what he was going to do once he met with Cho in the library. He kept wondering why he asked her to help him with his studies as opposed to any thing that was more along the lines of romance. Was that not supposed to be how letting his heart guide him supposed to work? Perhaps her helping him with his studies was not to be taken literally. Maybe it meant some thing else. What that was he certainly had no clue and he was not about to ask any one out of fear of what their answers might be.

At the same time, it probably was for the best that he was getting help with his studies. The amount of schoolwork he was receiving seemed to increase on a daily basis and he had to constantly be alert over what the Third Task was going to be and how he would prepare for it. Usually he would go to Hermione with regards to his studies, but she appeared to be quite preoccupied at the moment. What with her wanting to find out how Rita Skeeter worked and the occasional focus on her S.P.E.W. campaign, regardless of whether or not that was supposedly on hold. So perhaps it was a good thing that he asked Cho to help him out. And why not Cho? She was in Ravenclaw, so surely she was intelligent. At least that was according to the Sorting Hat whenever he described their house. Those of wit and learning, if he recalled.

Harry arrived in the library roughly a minute before ten in the morning on Sunday. He debated with himself hours before just how early he should show. It went on for quite a while that it was thirty minutes until ten and he had yet to take a shower. He slowed himself from his hustling pace just before he got to the door so that he would not get yelled at by Madam Pince, which he viewed as a terrible way to start the day spent with Cho. Once inside, he immediately found her standing at a nearby table. She was going over notes she had in her hands and there were small stacks of books in front of her. She was wearing a light blue coat over a white, turtleneck shirt and a heavy purple skirt that seemed to run at least past her knees. Her hair was combed to one side, yet still showing every delicate feature of her pretty face and also tied in a ponytail at the bottom of the back. Harry knew he was staring at her in an enamored way, but for some reason he did not care. What mattered to him was that she could appear so plainly and yet still be the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

A quiet pair of nearby giggles broke him slightly from his trance. It also caused Cho to look up from her notes. Both looked over to where the giggling was coming from, which turned out to be some girls sitting at a table to the left of Cho. Harry was not quite sure which of the girls were giggling, as they all were wearing grins. Well, all except one, who looked as though she was happily lost in her own thoughts at the moment. He turned back to Cho, almost taken aback that she was looking straight back at him. Wearing the smile he liked so much.

"Harry," Cho said in a quiet, yet delighted voice. "You made it."

"Yeah," he uttered breathlessly. He was suddenly beginning to wonder how in the world he would be able to maintain any sort of focus on his studies with the way his mind was being scrambled by his emotions. But at the moment, he felt perfectly content with just looking at her.

"Sorry about the additional company," Cho said, nodding her head to the giggling girls at the other table. "My so-called friends seem to think that you and I were going to do some thing other than schoolwork."

"Huh?" Harry muttered unconsciously. It was too late for him to stop his cheeks from blushing a light shade of pink, which he was certain those girls would pick up on as they started to giggle again. "Oh, yeah. Yeah, we're, uh, definitely just going to concentrate on you helping me with my studies and all that, yeah." He so very much wanted to slap himself in the face right now for allowing himself to say some thing so ludicrous.

"Good to know," Cho said, still smiling. It would seem that she was displaying a lot of patience. The kind that was making him admire her more than ever. She extended her hand out, beckoning him to take a seat at the table. He did so without hesitation. "Just to let you know, we Ravenclaw take our studies very seriously. I expect you to do the same. I'm here to help you, but you have to be able to do the brunt of the work by yourself. Understand?" Harry nodded slowly, trying to comprehend what she told him. "Alright then. Let's begin with Transfiguration."

When Hermione would help him with his studies in the past, Harry found that she would merely point out what he got wrong and expected him to fix it on his own. It was like she wanted him to figure out what the correct answer should be simply by telling him he did not get some thing right. Almost like she was a school professor of sorts. Cho was much different. If Harry got some thing wrong, she would guide him into figuring out not only what the correct answer was, but also understand why he got it wrong in the first place and how he could avoid making a similar mistake in the future. It felt as though his eyes were being opened to a more intriguing method of learning.

Harry also noted how Cho continued to display a great deal of patience with him. He was making a lot of mistakes early on, but she managed to always maintain her composure and not get frustrated as it took him some time before things started to click for him. When Hermione had been helping him, she would certainly show signs of frustration. Then again, she was also helping Ron at the same time and he would often push her patience to its limit. Cho was the opposite. In fact, it was almost as though she enjoyed spending as much time as it needed to help him go through one problem that was giving him trouble.

Though Harry did not pay a whole lot of attention to them, he did note that the others girls were trying to look just as busy as they were with their schoolwork. He managed to catch them glancing over in his direction every now and then, in partcular the one known as Marietta. They obviously were waiting to see if some thing was going to happen between him and Cho. As it was becoming clear that the two of them would be doing nothing more than study, the girls started to leave one by one in disappointment, Marietta being the last to leave with a heavy sigh. The lone exception was the one girl who seemed to be more interested in reading a magazine while wearing the strangest pair of glasses he had ever seen.

Regardless, he managed to maintain focus on his studies. And with help from Cho, he was slowly starting to get a hang of being able to complete his work and feel good about actually learning some thing for a change. As helpful as Hermione had been before, he never quite had the feeling of accomplishment largely because he just wanted to get the work over with as quickly as possible to concentrate on other things. This time around, he wanted to stay in the library with Cho for as long as possible. Which unfortunately ended at around dinner time as Madam Pince kicked them out so they could eat.

"So the Banishing Charm is not so much about concentrating on what you want to banish…" Cho started to say as they walked through the empty corridors toward the Great Hall.

"Rather is it about the amount of force needed to push that which I am trying to banish," Harry concluded, putting his brain to work in remembering what he had learned about the subject just moments ago. "Think of the probable mass it possesses, then the amount of force likely needed to push it, and finally focus on doubling it to ensure it is moved without contention."

"Very good," Cho said with a smile and nod. "Now all you need to do is put that to practice and you'll be able to perform the spell with ease."

"Hopefully," Harry responded humbly. He paused for a moment and took a curious glance over his shoulder, catching sight of the interesting girl a few paces behind, seemingly floating along as opposed to merely walking. "I take it she's one of your better friends for her to stick around with us?"

"Well, to be honest, I've only started getting to know her over the past week," Cho answered. "A couple years younger than me, so I really don't get to see her very often. She has a unique personality that tends to put off others, but I'm finding her company quite comforting, actually." Harry took another glance over his shoulder at the girl following behind them. She definitely had a unique personality, all right. He could not seem to figure what it was about her that would make her presence comforting, but then he figured it was probably a Ravenclaw thing and turned his attention back to Cho.

"Thank you again for helping me with my studies," Harry said to her. His voice almost started to falter out of shyness and he scratched the back of his head unconsciously. "Merlin knows I really needed it, what with every thing that has been going on lately."

"My pleasure," Cho said. Upon hearing those exact words, Harry could feel his heart skip a beat. "Do you know what the Third Task will be yet?"

"No, not yet," Harry replied, shaking his head. "Making me feel anxious, really. Don't even want to imagine what could be worse than having to face dragons or lasting an hour beneath the Black Lake." He tried to let out a chuckle to make it seem as though he was speaking casually, but the nervousness he felt got the best of him and it almost sounded like a squeak instead. To recover, he let out a cough and cleared his throat, though it gave the impression he was about to say some thing. For whatever reason, he believed that he had to say whatever could come to his mind quickly. "I, uh… was wondering if you could… you know… help me out again… some other time…"

Again with the studies? Granted he had a rather splendid time with Cho today and he felt as though he learned and understood a lot more than ever before. But was not the whole point of following his heart to try to woo her like his father did with his mother? It seemed like his mind was yelling at him with frustration at how seemingly illogical his heart had been thus far. Unable to understand why this is supposed to help him win her affections, if that indeed was the ultimate endgame to all of this.

Yet at the same time, he had to admit that letting his heart guide him as been helpful in one regard. He was starting to feel so much more comfortable around her. Had he been listening to his head, he would not even be here with her in the first place. He would probably be in the Gryffindor common room with Ron and Hermione brainstorming more possibilities of how Rita Skeeter was able to find out about things. Getting Cho to help him with his studies was definitely a better way to spend a Sunday, that was for sure.

"Am I that good of a tutor, then?" Cho asked with a teasing smirk forming on her lips and a brow raised at him.

"Of course," Harry replied unconsciously. She let out a gentle laugh and he went along with her, not even allowing himself a moment to think about what he was doing.

"Alright, then," she said pleasantly. "Does next Sunday back at the library sound good to you?"

"Works for me," Harry answered without hesitation. He had a feeling that some thing was definitely up. His mind was quite certain that his heart was about to lead him down a curious path.

"Next Sunday it is," Cho confirmed. "Ten in the morning should do nicely."

"Great," Harry said rather quickly. "I can't wait." He took a deep breath. "Thanks again for your help."

In a way, Harry was almost unaware of what he was doing. It just so happened that his brain was working hard enough to register the fact that it did happen. As though he was swimming in the Black Lake itself, Harry was leaned over without warning and swiftly kissed her on the cheek. Not a quick peck, but a nice, gentle one that she surely would have felt as soon as it happened. Once he had leaned back, they both came to a complete stop and looked at one another. She looked absolutely surprised at what just happened, a hand coming up to where the tip of her fingers were touching her lips. Harry blanched terribly. Complete silence fell over them for just a few moments, the only sound that could be heard was the quiet humming from the girl behind them. Cho blushed a shade of pink so light that it was barely visible on her cheeks. Her lips were slowly rising to form a small smile. The realization of his actions caused Harry to blush himself. Only he went full scarlet.

"I…" he started to say before failing to continue miserably. He slowly stepped backward, watching her smiling lips slowly get a little wider. His face was just burning with such intense heat that it was unfathomable to imagine he was not sweating. He cleared his throat and tried to talk again. "I… I'll be seeing you then…" Harry caught sight of her turning her hand in an attempt to wave while letting out a shy laugh before he turned and walked away.

Never once had Harry felt so embarrassed in his entire life. He just kissed Cho. Granted it was on the cheek, the fact remained that he kissed her. What in the world was he thinking? What possessed him to do that? What was the reason for it? Because she helped him with his studies? He wanted very much to go jump into the Black Lake, not just to cool himself down given how incredibly hot his body felt. He figured that freezing himself would be the best way to knock some sense back into him.

And yet he also felt absolutely wonderful. He kissed Cho and she smiled in return. A genuine smile. The kind of smile that made him believe that she was enchanted, or so he thought. Not a smile like any other girl, who liked Harry merely for his celebrity, would have made. He kept coming back to the smile more than he was to the kiss, because it was the reaction that was what made him believe that he was right to follow his heart. He still did not understand why it was having him ask Cho to help him with his studies, but that was besides the point. The point was that his actions appear to be winning her affections. Enough that his being able to plant a kiss on her cheek brought a smile to her face. A smile that he was sure was a sign that she honestly liked him. Not because he was Harry Potter, Triwizard Champion or the Boy Who Lived. But because he was Harry Potter, just plain Harry. Never before had he ever looked forward to going to the library on a Sunday morning.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Do I know how to get a new chapter up quickly or what? I appreciate some of you guys offering to help me out, but it really comes down to me actually writing out the words that are trapped within my head. It doesn't help that my head is several chapters ahead where I should be, often already at the finale. Furthermore, some serious personal events occurred that took precedence over everything else. Just know that I still plan on writing this story until I finish it, no matter how long it takes. Thank goodness for the audiobooks, as read by the lovely Stephen Fry, to continue reminding me of what I should be doing.

_Nauro - __The conversations about the distant date went a bit too long for my liking, since you showed both sides of the same conversation, that essentially mirrored each other too much - and reading the same thing twice was a bit too stale._

My intention was to present how others would react to the evolution of the relationship, regardless of how slow moving it may seem to some of them. In retrospect, I could easily written those scenes a lot better so that it did not appear that I was repeating what I had already written a few paragraphs earlier. Which I tried to be mindful of when I wrote this chapter.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


	9. Ch 8: Second Guessing

**The Autumn Swan**

a _Harry Potter_ fan fiction story

by Lord Akiyama

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><p><strong>Chapter Eight<strong>

**Second Guessing**

While there was little question to believe that the Triwizard Tournament was one of the most exciting sporting events in all of the wizarding world, careful examination would find that it may not necessarily be a spectator sport. At least, not the Triwizard Tournament of 1994-1995. It was true that hundreds of students got to witness the four champions compete against dragons in the First Task. But for the Second Task, they merely watched and waited for the champions to emerge from the Black Lake for just over an hour. Hardly the most mesmerizing thing in the world, and yet every one still expressed the same enthusiasm they had during the First Task. The Third Task appeared to be in line with the second, as the students would not be able to see all that was taking place inside the twenty-foot enclosed maze that had been erected upon the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch. Fortunately, entertainment in the form of a lesser known, though no less enjoyable, music band was provided to keep the spectators from feeling bored as they waited for some thing to happen in the tournament.

Cho was rather surprised to be seated about as close to the entrance of the maze as she was, given that she arrived a little later than most every one else. Marietta had some how managed to hold a seat for her against all of the incoming traffic of excited students. Then again, it became clear that her friend was quite insistent that she be seated next to her so that they could have a talk. Cho was very sure that one of the primary topics of discussion would be the new Rita Skeeter article in the Daily Prophet that proclaimed Harry Potter to be "Disturbed and Dangerous," as the headline read.

"The article does bring to light a few points of interest, though," Marietta noted in an interested tone of voice. "Think about it. In each of the last three years, he and at least one of his friends have ended up in the hospital wing right before the end of term. Remember Hermione Granger getting attacked a couple years back?"

"You're saying any one associated with Harry runs the risk of being in mortal danger, is that it?" Cho summarized aloud. She tried to sound as though this was hardly worth the concern, but felt the expression on her face might be betraying her. "Term's almost over and none of his friends are in the hospital wing."

"Just you wait," Marietta stated, waving a finger for effect. "There's only a week left and it's a matter of time before some thing happens that will result in them being sent there. If nothing else, chances are that Harry will be there by the end of the night given his participation in the Third Task right now."

This was turning into one of those moments where an assessment made by Marietta seemed to be logically sound. All any one would talk about during the End-of-Term Feast the last three years was what Harry and his friends encountered to send them to the hospital wing. They were hot topics in large part because Professor Dumbledore awarded them enough points to assure Gryffindor winning the House Cup. In retrospect, Cho found it curious that hardly any one outside of Slytherin might have been concerned that the Hogwarts Headmaster appeared to be showing favoritism to Gryffindor. Then again, every one else seemed content since it meant Slytherin did not win the House Cup and thus discussions instead turned to figuring out what sort of bravery Harry and his friends displayed to earn Gryffindor the victory.

"Brings up another point, as a matter of fact," Marietta continued after only a short pause from when she last spoke. "Regardless of whether or not they happen because of him, you can't deny that a lot of nasty things happen to him. Be it having to compete in the Triwizard Tournament this year, the Dementors and the threat of Sirius Black running around in the school last year, the Basilisk attacks and every one for a while thinking he was responsible the year before, the stuff that happened on the third-floor corridor that Professor Dumbledore specifically stated was off limits in his first year. Seems to have a knack for attracting trouble, huh?"

There it was again. Another moment of Marietta presenting a logical hypothesis to some thing. She was certainly proving her worthiness at being placed in Ravenclaw. Cho noted in her head that this was not taking into consideration the fact that he was Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, a position she herself knew first-hand was often times the most dangerous to play. What Marietta was essentially saying was that Harry perhaps may not be as "Disturbed and Dangerous" as the article implied, but that it probably was not safe to be around him regardless.

"So what, you want me to stop meeting with Harry in the library on Sundays just to help him with his studies?" Cho asked. She made a feeble attempt at trying to sound sarcastic, but she gave up even before she spoke. It instead made the concern in her voice more prominent.

"I just want to know if you're really serious about hanging around him, that's all," Marietta responded. "Being your good friend and all, I have to keep watch on your well-being."

"Nice to know that you care well enough to suggest whether or not it's too dangerous to be with some one like Harry," Cho commented aloud. Again she tried to sound sarcastic and again she gave up before speaking.

Further discussion was put on hold when red sparks were seen above the maze. A Triwizard Champion was calling it quits. All of the spectators slowly began to quiet down as they waited with anticipation for the identity of the competitor who had been eliminated. They watched as Professor Moody, one of the chosen officials patrolling the maze, descended upon the spot where the red sparks emanated from. Moments later, he was airborne again, cradling a passenger in front of him. When he landed at the front of the entrance to the maze, spectators who sat fairly close got a pretty good look at who it was that was eliminated. Though it was seconds later when every one else heard the identity of the Triwizard Champion through the announcement made by Ludo Bagman.

"Attention, ladies and gentlemen!" Bagman proclaimed to the crowd. "The first Champion to be eliminated from the Triwizard Tournament is Ms. Fleur Delacour-" Though his voice had been amplified to be heard over large crowd noises, it was muffled slightly by the jeers and groans coming from the Beauxbaton students nearby. Cho wondered if they were upset at Fleur losing or that they just did not win the tournament at all.

The crowd remained fixed on Fleur, or rather as much of her as they could see depending upon from where they were looking. From her position near the entrance of the maze, Cho was able to see pretty much every thing that was happening. She watched as Fleur appeared to be regaining consciousness and then, once she was informed that she had been eliminated, cried into the arms of her mother and sister before being joined by the Beauxbaton Headmistress Madam Maxime. The crowd gave her a seemingly appreciative applauds when she headed off to a waiting position to be examined further by Madam Pomfrey.

But just before every one could sit back comfortably, another bang was heard. Looking up, the crowd saw red sparks visible above the maze. Another Triwizard Champion had been eliminated. The spectators tried to remain quiet, but were soon murmuring with anticipation over who had been eliminated next. Before long, Professor Moody was returning with a passenger slumped up against his back. Cho felt some of those who were sitting behind her lean forward to the point of nearly shoving up against her so that they could get a better look at the identity of the eliminated participant. Fortunately, it was not long before Ludo Bagman made the announcement.

"Your attention, please!" Bagman declared to the crowd. "The second Champion to be eliminated from the Triwizard Tournament is Mr. Viktor Krum-" The Durmstrang students responded horribly. They were absolutely livid, in disbelief that Viktor could possibly have lost. It was unfathomable. Their headmaster Professor Karkaroff threw his hat down as hard as he could to the ground and stomped around in frustration. Clearly every one in Durmstrang expected nothing less than total victory. They were apparently not the only ones disappointed as Cho managed to catch sight of some of the Slytherin students jeering. She could only presume that they were acting this way simply because Harry had not been eliminated yet.

"Oh, wow!" Marietta gasped with excitement rather suddenly. "It's between Cedric and Harry! Can you believe it?"

Cho noticed that many others within the crowd were coming to the same realization. The attention on Krum as he was being attended to slowly diminished as spectators began to murmur with growing anticipation. This was especially so within the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor students with some starting to make noise, be it stomping of feet, clapping of hands, or even the chanting of their respective house or their representing champion. The Slytherin students appeared not to bother with joining in on the excitement while the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students had little reason to follow along as their respective champions had been eliminated. The Ravenclaw students, meanwhile, merely accompanied the cheers out of school pride. Regardless of who the winner was going to be, he would at the very least be a representative of Hogwarts, and that was enough for the Ravenclaw students to be excited. As such, the vast majority really did not pick which champion to root for whereas a few, like Marietta, did.

"Cedric can win this, I just know it," Marietta quietly said while desperately trying to contain herself. It was quite an amusing sight, actually. Sitting straight up and attempting to look composed, though her hands had been rolled up into fists and hovered just inches away from her mouth while shaking. Her eyes were so wide open they were in danger of popping right out. Cho can't remember the last time Marietta had ever been this excited. The only thing that seemed to be missing was her friend letting out squeaks and squeals, which seemed bound to happen at any moment.

For a good long while, nearly all of the spectators were on the edge of their seat, waiting for either a third set of red sparks to appear or for the champion to be transported to the front of the maze entrance. The belief being that the tournament would end shortly given how quickly Fleur and Viktor had been eliminated. But time began to pass and there was no apparent change in the status of the competition. It started to seem like hours and Cedric and Harry were still some where in the maze looking for the Triwizard Cup. The excitement that had been displayed since the elimination of Viktor was easing down until there were merely murmurs and whispers. Soon enough, anxiety took hold and virtually every one was wondering what was taking so long for a winner to emerge.

"I hope nothing has happened to him…" Marietta whimpered quietly, tapping her foot rather rapidly and on the verge of biting off her finger nails. She then suddenly turned to Cho, looking about as nervous as she could ever remember seeing her friend being. "You don't think some thing has happened to them, do you?" Cho managed to shrug in response. She was going to voice her opinion on the matter, but Marietta immediately spoke again. "I'm sure they'll be able to take care of themselves. I mean, they're Triwizard Champions for a reason, right? Cedric is going to graduate at the end of term and Harry Potter is The Boy Who Lived."

"Perhaps they got lost," Cho said when she was finally able to get a word in. "This is a maze, after all. I imagine this kind of maze would certainly be a difficult one to solve given what is at stake."

"Okay, sure, they are probably lost in there some where," Marietta muttered, sounding as though saying this aloud would help her relax if only for a little bit. She was nevertheless transforming into a nervous wreck. "Only I hope they're not trapped in there for too long. There's no time limit on this thing, right? They could be stuck in there all night. Maybe even past the end of term."

This was not the first time Cho was witnessing her friend descending into such an emotional breakdown. It was very rare, but it had happened before. Still, seeing Marietta very nearly pulling her hair out gave her a moment to pause and think about her own feelings with regards what was happening in the Triwizard Tournament. Or rather more importantly her feelings with regards to Harry. Should she not be as agitated as her friend? Why was she being as calm as she was under the circumstances? Yes, there was anxiety running through her whole body, as evident by the heel of her otherwise planted right foot rapidly tapping the floor. And her nails were slowly tracing her lips, as if anticipating the moment when they would find their way into her mouth only for them to be removed from her fingers by her teeth. Otherwise, she was nowhere near being on the brink as perhaps she should be. Unless her feelings for Harry were not as she had considered them to be.

Yet she was reminded that she had not quite made a full decision on what exactly her feelings for Harry was. She liked him, that much Cho would freely admit. How much she liked him she still could not figure out. She was worried about him, about whether or not some thing may have happened as the Third Task continued on. She just could not figure how worried she was or should be. If she really liked him as much as say Marietta liked Cedric, then it would stand to reason that she should be experiencing, or rather expressing, the same kind of nervousness as her friend, right? So it would stand to reason that she may not like him that much. But then there were the kisses they gave one another, her on his cheek and than his on her cheek. They were sweet, unexpected, and made them feel warm. At least that was how she felt when she received her kiss, though she would imagine he felt the same way given the reaction when he received his. The warmth made her feel sure that her interest in Harry was at the very least more than just some kind of simple friendship, if there ever could be one described as such.

Why was it now, of all the possible times for it happen, that she was having this self-examination of her thoughts and feelings for Harry? It would stand to reason that she should have done this some time ago, perhaps as recently as this morning. Yet here she was, waiting for word to see what the end result of the Third Task, and therefore the Triwizard Tournament, was going to be and in anticipation over what condition Harry would be in. Marietta had pointed out earlier that Harry had a knack for being in trouble, whether it was intentional or not. Could that be the reason why she was in the middle of having these thoughts about him? That his being in some sort of trouble, or rather danger, inside that maze was what brought about her feelings for him in the first place. It probably was. It probably was for the best to have this examination sooner rather than later. To really grasp the reality of the situation. The situation being whether or not she could accept being in a relationship with Harry Potter.

Could she handle it? Could she handle the constant worrying over him, knowing that some thing was going to happen to him? As noted by her friend, he had a habit of ending up in the hospital wing right before the end of every term since he arrived. Furthermore, he generally was not alone in being sent there at the same time. Ron was there twice and even Hermione was there as well. If she engaged in a serious relationship with Harry, chances were great that she herself would wind up there at some point before she left Hogwarts. And what of the condition she might be in? Being his best friends, Ron and Hermione got their fair share of terrible licks. Hermione had been petrified by the Basilisk and Ron had the bad leg the previous year that reportedly had been gnawed on by some thing vicious, if the rumors that had been spread were true. There would be little doubt that being the girlfriend of Harry Potter would put her in a position of great peril. And that was only the physical danger to be concerned about.

Cho could not even begin to fathom the psychological toll she might have from being in a relationship with Harry. Whether he wanted it or not, he had a famous name. One that was often on the lips of every person in the Wizarding world. Being his girlfriend would make her a target. She would likely find herself the subject of some scandalous article written by Rita Skeeter. How much worse the constant taunting and attempts to humiliate her by the Slytherin would become. How jealous a number of female admirers Harry may or may not know about, just waiting in the wings to attack her, regardless of whether or not they would actually cause bodily harm. The potential dislike her fellows in Ravenclaw would have for her "fraternizing" with a Quidditch opponent. If her friends could accept her in a relationship with him. If his friends could.

The physical strain, the psychological strain. Perhaps Harry was "Disturbed and Dangerous", just not in the way or manner Rita Skeeter had described him. It was not so much that he was a threat to people around him intentionally or even in the normal sense. His very being was a threat. It meant that one would have to deal with, and most likely endure, whatever troubles happen to and around him. Regardless of whether or not he was at fault, it was going to happen and the unlucky person or persons who were nearby would take their share of the lumps. It would appear that Ron and Hermione were willing to accept the consequences of being his best friend, what would seem like a daily struggle to maintain their own well being no matter the circumstances. Was Cho willing to do the same if she were to enter a relationship with him?

Cho remained locked in her thoughts until a flash was seen at the front of the maze entrance. All went dead silent for a split second, every spectator trying to register if they heard or seen some thing. But it was not long before every one stood on their feet and were cheering. It would appear that some one had completed the Third Task and was thus the winner of the Triwizard Tournament. The problem was that the view to see who had won was obscured by every one blocking each other in an effort to get a good view. Factor in the constant yelling of people wanting to find out and it would have been next to impossible to get a clear answer within the next ten minutes, perhaps even thirty. It was getting to the point where students were about to shove one another when they all froze upon hearing a sound that caused every thing to fall silent once more.

The sound of Fleur Delacour screaming in horror.

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><p>While Harry did not particularly care that people were skirting him or avoiding his gaze or whispering behind his back in the aftermath of the tragic end to the Triwizard Tournament, he was starting to get annoyed. The behavior he more than expected from the Slytherin students, who he knew would take any and every opportunity to put him down in some fashion. But he was finding that other students in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, and to his surprise a couple from Gryffindor here and there, were displaying the same manner whenever he was in their presence. While he was glad that Professor Dumbledore asked all of the students to leave him be in the days that followed that fateful night, he kind of wished some thing had been done about the ridicules Rita Skeeter article that had labeled him "Disturbed and Dangerous" as it made quite an impact on public perception. As if he needed any more unwanted attention, which he had been dealing with over the past year and then some.<p>

When an opportunity arose one afternoon, Harry quickly ducked through a seemingly empty corridor without being spotted by a group of students that were mingling near the school entrance. He wanted to slip out quietly to meet with Hagrid, but it was apparent that it was not going to be easy. It was fortunate that he no longer had Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, as a result of there being no longer a professor for the rest of the term, so he could take his time getting to the school gamekeeper. Only a couple minutes later, meeting Hagrid became the last thing on his mind.

Before he knew it, Harry found himself coming to a stop just several feet away from Cho. Almost immediately, he became afraid. Cho was the girl he had been smitten with for roughly a year and a half. Several months ago, he managed to muster the courage to ask her to the Yule Ball and she accepted. In the time since, they appeared to be becoming good friends and she was soon the person to go to when he needed help with his studies. And then there were the kisses. Each kissing the other on the cheek, mind you, but they were kisses all the same. Which he took as a sign that they might be some thing more than mere friends like he was with Ron and Hermione. But now what did she think of him after what happened at the Triwizard Tournament? He may not care about the opinions of most other students, yet he very much was concerned about her opinion.

The first thing Harry noticed right from the start was that Cho did not flinch. She did not look away or did any thing that looked to be some sort of nervous movement. The kind that the other students did whenever he was in their presence. It gave him the impression that they were embarrassed to be in the same room with him. Cho did not look or seemingly act that way. One less thing he had to worry about, but it was not much in the way of easing the tension that had built up inside of him. Now he wondered if perhaps Dumbledore asking all the students to leave Harry alone might have caused an unexpected detriment. That she was perhaps respecting the request made by the headmaster and was therefore not going to communicate with him. But now he very much wanted her to at least say some thing to him. So he waited for what she would do next.

Time seemed to have moved extremely slow once Cho had appeared in his line of sight. He imagined that only perhaps two minutes had passed, yet it felt like two hours. Neither one of them moved the entire time except to blink. For a moment, Harry was just begging for Cho to flash him that smile she had worn many times that would cause his heart to leap. He felt that was the sign he needed to see that would melt away all his doubts and worries regarding her present opinion about him. But the smile was not there. The smile he would do any thing for her to form on her lips.

More time had passed and still nothing happened. Harry kept his focus on her lips in the hopes of seeing her smile before taking a chance to find another feature of Cho to look at. His eyes immediately came up to her eyes. Those chocolate brown eyes. It was with her eyes that she helped him get through his first dance in front of thousands watching during the Yule Ball when she told him to focus on her and never look away. He wondered if there was a way to communicate through their eyes. To see if she could tell him without speaking a word how she felt about him right now. If only he could tell if this was the case as he looked straight into her eyes.

He took another chance and slowly moved a step toward her. She did not move. She did not flinch. Her eyes remained fixed to his. He swallowed and took another couple of slow steps. No movement from her, her gaze still meeting his. Before he knew it, he was within a foot or two away from her. Memories of the nervousness he felt when he asked her to the Yule Ball came flooding back. How his heart was pounding so fast and hard that it was in danger of bursting out of his chest. The sweat running down the side of his face and the shortness of every breath he took. This was a different kind of anxiety now. It would have been one thing for Cho to have rejected him back then as they hardly knew one another. He honestly could not handle being rejected by her now.

They stood in silence with their eyes locked upon one another. Harry wanting very much to read what her chocolate brown eyes were saying to him. Could she read his green eyes? Could she see how worried he was? How he so desperately did not want her to think little of him like most every one else in the school did at the present moment?

Some thing must have clicked in his brain. Some thing he could not explain or possibly understand. Quite suddenly and without warning, he dropped his head down, raised a hand up to cover his eyes, pushing his glasses up to his forehead and out of the way. As though he had no further control over his body, his knees began to buckle. He instantly began to feel Cho wrapping her arms around him, embracing him just enough so that he could feel her warmth. He did not so much cry as sob, letting the tears slowly fall from his eyes while trying not to make a sound. She used her body to slow his descent until he was on his knees. Then she allowed him to bury his face on her shoulder.

The pain was too much. This was what Harry figured was the cause of his sudden breakdown in front of her upon retrospect. The pain of the whole year just coming to fruition as it beat down on him physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. The warning signs of the impending return of the Dark Lord, seeing visions of what he was doing. His wand being stolen and used to create the Dark Mark in the sky following the Quidditch World Cup. Knowledge of the curse that killed his parents. His name being slipped into the Goblet of Fire and then chosen to be the unprecedented fourth Triwizard Champion. The public scrutiny he had to endure, which included harm caused to his friendship with Ron. Rita Skeeter and her damned scandalous articles. Having to tackle the Hungarian Horntail in the First Task. Asking Cho to the Yule Ball. Having to have his first dance with her in front of so many onlookers. Trying to unlock the clue regarding the Second Task. The toll he took competing in the Second Task in the Black Lake, saving Ron and then the sister of Fleur Delacour. The private conversations between Snape and Karkaroff. The madness and then disappearance of Barty Crouch Sr. Entering the Pensive and witnessing Barty Crouch Sr. sentence his son without mercy. Fighting through the obstacles in the Third Task. Being transported with Cedric not back to the entrance of the maze, but to a cemetery. His helplessness to prevent Wormtail from killing Cedric. Voldemort returning. Their duel. The Priori Incantatem. His parents speaking to him. His escape with the lifeless body of Cedric. Mad Eye Moody revealed to be Barty Crouch Jr. in disguise. The Minister disbelieving that Voldemort had returned. His fear of losing Cho. The weight of all of this and the events that had transpired in years past was finally too much for him to bare.

"It's okay, Harry," he managed to hear Cho whisper softly to him. She was also stroking the back of his head, running her hand gently through his shaggy hair. "I'm here for you."

Harry could not remember how long they stayed like that, him releasing all of his emotions as she embraced and comforted him. He was quite surprised that not a single soul, living or ghost, walked in on them. The most that he could recall was that he eventually regained his composure and that at some point she kissed his forehead. Placing it directly upon the lightning bolt scar. She did gave him the smile that he wanted to see before they finally parted. The smile that assured him that she meant every word she had said to him.

Perhaps it was going to be okay. Because she would be there for him. Maybe that was what he needed more than any thing to ease his suffering. And the healing of his whole being inside and out could really begin.

* * *

><p>Cho wanted to meet Harry at least one more time before returning home for the summer. That was easier said than done. It was by sheer luck that she ran into him days after the end of the Triwizard Tournament. Professor Dumbledore asked all of the students to leave him be and she wanted to respect that request in public. Getting a private moment with Harry turned out to be a seemingly impossible task. It did not help that she was one year ahead of him, meaning she would not be crossing paths with him in-between classes. Furthermore, it seemed that Harry simply wanted to get through whatever he needed to do during the day and return to the comforts of Gryffindor tower as quickly as possible. She really could not blame him, not with the way most of the other students seemed to leer at him whenever he was in their presence and whispered whatever gossip they heard behind his back.<p>

Even she hardly had any free time to actively seek him out. This was because much of her attention was toward trying to console Marietta. Her friend had been an absolute wreck as a result of Cedric dying. The wailing and crying she had made the entire night when his corpse appeared was unlike any thing Cho had ever seen from her. It took several hours, just as dawn was beginning to break the following morning, before Marietta finally managed to quiet down long enough to pass out from exhaustion. Since then, it was like walking on a tight-rope around her. A sudden move and she was bursting into tears. Trying to comfort her became a challenge Cho found herself failing more times than she succeeded. It was during moments like these that the camaraderie with her Quidditch teammates became essential as they made sure she herself did not lose her composure. She was even finding herself also at ease in the company of Luna Lovegood, who some how managed to say some thing that just made her feel better. It did not necessarily had to do with her efforts to comfort Marietta, most of the time it was in regards to some random nonsense that was published in The Quibbler like the recent change in the migration patterns of pink elephants. For some odd reason, Cho found these to be absolutely soothing.

Nevertheless, Cho was most anxious to meet with Harry as soon as possible. And her chance came the day every one was to depart for the Hogwarts Express. She managed to slip away from Marietta and the other Ravenclaw girls who would be accompanying them for a quick moment just as the horseless carriages were about to arrive. She caught sight of Harry, who appeared to be grinning at that sight of Ron asking Viktor Krum for an autograph. The timing just happened to be right as Harry turned his green eyes to meet with her. His grin turned slightly into a shy smile and he waved. She smiled and waved in return before proceeding towards him. For once, he did not seem nervous or embarrassed as she approached him, though she had a feeling pink was starting to appear on his cheeks once they were within a foot or two from one another.

"Hey," she uttered breathlessly.

"Hey," he responded in the same manner.

Cho took a deep breath, dug into her coat pocket, and pulled out a small piece of parchment that she handed to him. "Any time you want, no matter what, would you write to me?" she asked. "About any thing?" Harry looked to be quite taken aback for a moment. He looked down at the parchment, making sure it was what he thought it was. He smiled some more as he brought his eyes back up to her, which caused her smile to widen.

"Of course," he answered. There was no stutter in his voice, no hint of a shy squeak. Sure it was not entirely calm and confident, but it was genuine and honest. The exact qualities that she liked to hear whenever he spoke to her.

As Krum was signing his autograph on a piece of parchment for Ron, Cho leaned up and forward to give Harry a kiss on his cheek. The first time she did this, it was just long enough for him to realize that it happened. When he kissed her cheek, it was slightly longer. With this kiss, she wanted to leave a lasting impression. It was nice and gentle, and she wanted him to feel her lips being placed upon him and then some. She dared to venture that it lasted for at least half a minute, but the proper time did not seem to matter. When she finally pulled back, she saw that Harry did not turn white. He did not display any sort of nervousness or extreme shyness like he had done before, though the slight shade of pink on his cheeks remained.

Their eyes met once more. Those green eyes of his. How she was starting to fall for them. Just the way they looked back at her, being able to see the sincerity they displayed took her breath away. Looking in his eyes was more than enough for her to know just how much the Rita Skeeter articles were rubbish. That Harry Potter was not disturbed or dangerous at all. He was a kind soul, not some egotistical glory-hound wanting to maintain his presence in the spotlight for as long as he could. By looking into his eyes, she could see how much he cared for and about her. She could also see an ever growing affection build up inside. She hoped he could sense the same thing when he looked into her chocolate brown eyes. That she shared similar feelings for and about him.

"Take care, Harry," Cho said in a quiet voice.

"You, too," he said in return. "And I'll definitely write to you." She could not help but let out a light laugh upon hearing this.

"Then I will be looking forward to it," she said before she started to slowly walk backwards. "See you after summer, then?"

"Yeah," he replied. "See you after summer." They lightly waved to one another as she continued to step away from him.

"Bye," she said.

"Bye," he said.

Their eyes maintained their lock on one another for just another moment longer before Cho finally turned. It took her only a couple steps before she glanced back over her shoulder. He was still looking at her, gentle smile on his face. There was no nervousness in his body language and not a whole lot of shyness, apart from the tiniest shades of pink still visible on his cheeks. This was exactly the image she wanted of him to be embedded in her mind throughout the next few months of summer. The very picture of him she wanted to see should she dream of him in her sleep. What to reflect upon as soon as she read any and all letters she knew he would be sending to her. Her eyes lingered on him for as long as she could before turning back forward and proceeding to rejoin Marietta and the others.

So it was that the two of them made a silent commitment. An engagement sealed with her placing a kiss on his cheek. It would be from this moment onward that they were girlfriend and boyfriend respectively to one another. Cho Chang was now dating Harry Potter. Thus she was doomed.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Yep. It took me a year and then some to finally upload the new chapter. The primary reason for the delay was my working a full-time job that I was placing a great deal of my focus and attention upon. There were also family obligations out and about, what with my parents constantly visiting and all of us pitching in to help my brother and his family as they spent forever and beyond to get moved into their new place. I also found myself joining in on other fandom subjects along the way.

Now, I will admit that there was a bit of creative blockage with this chapter. I had a great deal of dialogue planned, but just could not figure a way to best write them out or to how to work them into the story properly. Once again, I'm already thinking several chapters ahead to what I want to write and the problem had been getting my head to concentrate on the task at hand so I could get there.

I know what some of you might be thinking. I should get a beta-reader. A nice idea in theory, but the issue is more of me just actually writing the damned thing. I feel like I get distracted more often than not and by the time I finally get a chance to sit down and start typing months have passed.

Just know that I have no plans to abandon this story. I've invested a lot of myself into this and I will see it through to the end. That you can count on. It's just a matter of how long it will take before I reach the finish line. Hopefully you all will still be there with me when it finally happens.

I was going to address the characterization of Cho in my story compared to how Rowling originally wrote her, but some one else beat me to the punch. So I'll go with this one:

_Emeraldfireblade - I'm not crazy about Luna, she doesn't seem to add anything to the plot in this story. If you are trying to find a place for her in your story, don't forget that she's good friends with Ginny, and would probably be willing to try to sabotage Cho and Harry on Ginny's behalf._

An interesting idea, and one that I might actually think about incorporating maybe. But in honesty, I hope you saw a little tease in this chapter of just what her place in the story will be. Luna is part of a plan to show the impact being in a relationship with Harry has on Cho, the effect it will have on her life moving forward. Can't really say much more because I want to focus on the next chapter now.

Please don't forget to send in your reviews and spread the word. The more the merrier.

_Harry Potter_ and all the characters, locations, and world created and copyright © JK Rowling. This story was created out of pure fun and enjoyment, so please don't sue or place an Imperius Curse on me.


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